Saving Grace
by LoquitorLatinae
Summary: AU. Humanity and the supernatural live an uneasy truce. That is until Dean, a bartender in a small Midwestern town, runs into something even he didn't think was real: an angel, and is brought into a fight between Heaven, Hell, a Nephilim and her father.
1. Chapter 1

Hey look, I'm alive! I had every intention of writing an entirely different story but this one pretty much haunted me until I just gave in and started to write it out. This is likely to be a moderately short story, probably ending in something like ten chapters, but it's been on my mind for a while, so I hope you enjoy it. I'd love to hear what you all think! ^_^

O

* * *

><p>Chapter 1<p>

* * *

><p>Dean glared out at the heavy rain pouring down outside as he finished wiping down the dark wooden surface of the bar. A storm had come through that night and scared off most of his usual customers. Not that Dean could blame them; the sudden downpour was coming down so hard that it was impossible to see anything a few feet past the windows even with the outside lights on, making for bad driving weather. That, and at two o' clock in the morning the only one still up and about the small Midwestern town was Dean himself.<p>

Dean was the only one ever awake at this hour. These days anyways. The Roadhouse, the bar he ran, stayed open until one in the morning, even though no one ever came in past midnight unless they were having a _really _bad night. Used to be that he, Ellen, and Jo would close the place up together but ever since—for a couple of years now it had just been Dean cleaning everything and locking the place up at night.

Swearing softly under his breath, Dean's eyes drifted away from the rain outside and over to a small picture tacked underneath the bar. It was of him, Ellen, and Jo, standing out in front of the Roadhouse, all three smiling at the camera. It had been their Christmas card that year. Dean was just happy he had actually smiled for once. When it had been taken he hadn't known that it was going to be the last photograph he would ever have of the three of them together. Only a few months afterwards Ellen and Jo had been murdered, _slaughtered_, by a random demon who had stumbled into town off of the main highway. The damn thing hadn't even given them a chance, just tore them apart before they even knew what hit 'em along with three other good people who were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Dean had been at home when it happened but he could still remember every word the sheriff had said to him when he had shown up on Dean's doorstep. He had said that there wasn't anything anyone could've done to save them, the demon was just too fast.

That was the problem with this world, the damned monsters. All of them. There were some areas of the country were monste—"people" like vampires and werewolves actually lived alongside humans. For the most part, you wouldn't even be able to tell they weren't human. Apparently in some of the bigger cities like New York or Los Angeles it wasn't uncommon to have a coworker who would just take a few days off every month, right around the time of the full moon, to go spend a week out in the woods, and everyone knew better than to ask questions. After all, there were Equal Opportunity Employment rules these days, federal laws that insisted "they were human once too" and that they deserved the chance to try and make a living.

Sure, that was all fine and dandy, right up to the point where one of them ripped a person's throat out. Those that lived amongst humans supposedly policed themselves, knowing that if one of them stepped out of line their whole race would suffer for it, but Dean still didn't buy it. He had read things, seen shows on TV, explaining what kind of instincts they were filled with, what kinds of cravings, and hell if he could see how those things could be trusted among humans. Humans who, no matter how strong they were relative to their own race, would be as weak and fragile as porcelain dolls to even the weakest vamp.

The worst of all the monsters out there were definitely the demons though. They were the most powerful, the most instinctually driven to cause harm and suffering, and they looked exactly human. No vamp fangs, not even any weird eye reflection like a shifter. The only difference was that when demons lost control an inky blackness covered their eyes, but by the time that happened the human looking at them was about half a second away from being eviscerated. Sure, there were some demons living in the big cities, claiming that they had control over themselves, but to Dean it was all a bunch of bullshit. As far as he was concerned there was only one exception in the entire world to his rule that demons and anything demon-like needed to be shot on sight: his little brother, Sam.

Sammy was his full brother, like Dean the son of John and Mary Winchester, but thanks to a dirty little family secret had the bad luck of being born with a recessive trait that had skipped over Dean: demonic abilities. Their grandfather, Mary's dad Samuel, had actually been a demon and though Mary had been normal it turned out that she had passed something along to her children. Well, one of them anyway. Because Samuel had married a human, Sammy didn't get a full dose of demon blood but it was just enough to make him different. Just different enough to be shunned in their small, monster-hating town to the point where he left for California as soon as he turned eighteen. Dean had stayed behind.

A sudden crash broke Dean out of his daydreaming and his head snapped up, the rest of his body tensing. It sounded like someone had ran a truck into the side of the building, the loud bang audible even over the sound of the rain. But no one was ever out this late, so maybe…

Dean's jaw tightened and he dropped the rag he was holding only to reach down beneath the bar and grab the shotgun Ellen always had stowed there for emergencies along with a small collection of different types of ammunition: regular, silver, and rock salt. Whatever was outside messing with his building wasn't going to be there for much longer, especially if it was something supernatural. Thanks to his little trip down memory lane Dean was itching to gank a monster; shifter, ghost, vamp, it didn't matter. As long as he could pump a few rounds into it he would be happy. And if it was only a robber looking for an easy score they were going to get one hell of a welcoming.

Hurrying around the bar counter and to the front door Dean had just enough sense to shrug on his leather jacket before stepping outside into the pounding rain. The large droplets felt as big as golf balls as they hammered down onto Dean's face, instantly soaking him and plastering his hair to his forehead, but he ignored it. Instead he raised the shotgun up and began to scan the front parking lot for anything suspicious, sharp eyes going over every parking space but no, nothing out of place. But he hadn't been expecting anything; the noise had come from the side of the Roadhouse, not the front.

Shotgun still at the ready, Dean pressed himself up against the outside of the bar and slowly rounded the corner where the noise had come from with all the skills of a soldier. His Daddy hadn't raised no sissies, the former Marine training his sons how to take care of themselves after their mother had passed away, including how to approach a possible enemy without being spotted. People had thought John was a little crazy for it but occasionally it really came in handy. Like now for instance.

As he reached the edge of the building Dean peeked around the corner, trying to prepare himself for whatever he might see. Burglar, demon, werewolf—But the scene he did see did nothing but confuse him. The wood paneling of the Roadhouse had been punched in, looking exactly like someone had run their car into the side, though the damage was raised a few feet off the ground. So unless someone had gotten their car to come flying off a ramp and then rammed it into the side of the building, it probably hadn't been a car.

The damage was strange enough in itself but what really caught Dean's attention was a figure crouching down, facing the wall. Dean wiped a hand over his eyes to make sure the rainwater trickling down his face wasn't making him see things but, no, it was definitely a dude, white dress shirt, dark slacks, blue tie, all his clothes soaked and sticking to his skin as he wrapped something up in a trench-coat in front of him. The rain made it hard to make out his face or his expression but he definitely seemed calmer than most would-be robbers or crazed demons.

Still, didn't hurt to be careful and if this guy had made the dent in the side of the Roadhouse he wasn't anything to be taken lightly. Taking in a deep breath to steady himself, Dean made his move. Whipping around the corner, he strode forward about ten feet, now only about twenty feet away from the man and loaded a salt round into the barrel of the shotgun. The sound of the action working caused the guy to look up and Dean lowered his voice, having to shout to be heard over the rain, "Hey! What the hell are you doing here, y—!"

The man's eyes widened and before Dean could so much as finish his sentence a white light cut through the early morning darkness. It took Dean half a second to realize that the light was actually coming from the man but before Dean could process what that meant the man turned around to face him fully and wings—freaking _wings_—flared up behind him, the darkness of the feathers doing nothing to block out the light coming off of the guy.

Stumbling back in surprise, Dean slipped on the mud underfoot and fell onto his ass, the shotgun flying from his grip as he hit the ground. As soon as Dean was unarmed the light began to fade but the wings stayed out, completely blocking Dean's view of whatever the man had been hiding behind him.

Dean swallowed thickly, unable to so much as move an inch under the other's piercing blue eyes, the color cutting through the night like they were glowing. And maybe they were because Dean's brain had just caught up with him and he realized just what had crashed into the side of the Roadhouse.

It was a freaking _angel_.

To call angels rare would be an understatement. They were basically like Bigfoot: some people thought they were real, most didn't. It didn't help that, like demons, angels were supposed to look exactly like humans unless they powered up. Until about a minute ago, Dean had been one of those people who had placed angels into the "bullshit" category with unicorns and aliens but now…Jesus, angels were _real_. And he had just threatened one with a shotgun, which would have done about as much good as throwing a dart at a grizzly bear. Fucking great.

Dean slowly stood, managing to slip only twice in the mud before he got himself back onto his feet. "Hey, look man, I don't want any trouble." He tried to keep his voice steady, to keep calm, but it was a little hard when the thing standing less than twenty feet away could literally obliterate him with a snap of its fingers.

"Nor do I."

Dean jumped a little as it finally spoke. For its shape, the angel had a surprisingly deep voice. But at least it was talking instead of smiting. Dean wanted to keep it that way. "Alright, good. Do you mind telling me why you're trying to renovate my bar in the middle of the night then?" Dean winced as soon as the words left his mouth. Only he would cop an attitude while talking to an angel of all things.

The angel though didn't seem to have taken offense and just tilted his head like he was confused before looking over at the wall of the Roadhouse. "Ah. I apologize for the damage done, but I do not have the time to repair it. I will be leaving shortly."

The angel's wings drooped slightly, finally relaxing out of their flared stance, and for the first time Dean noticed how exhausted the thing looked. If he had been human Dean would've said he looked about ready to pass out. The rain that by now had completely soaked through his clothing didn't seem to bother him but there were heavy bags under his eyes and something about the way he was holding himself made it seem like he hadn't had the chance to rest in a long while.

But it wasn't any of Dean's business. Right now his only job was to get this thing to leave without doing any more damage to either Dean or the Roadhouse. "Right. Well, you'd better hit the road before anyone spots you. This isn't exactly a town friendly to the supernatural. Humans only."

"I understand." And it seemed like he actually did because the next moment his wings had disappeared. Turning, he stooped down towards the pile covered by the trench-coat, "If you could direct me to the highway I would be grateful."

Nodding, Dean opened his mouth to rattle off some directions but the words caught in his throat as the angel picked up the bundle leaning against the wall and two feet slipped out from underneath the trench. Holy shit; there was a kid under that coat. Concern immediately welled up in Dean's chest and he took a step forward. The angel's eyes instantly flashed over to him and his grip tightened on the child now cradled in his arms. Like he expected Dean to attack it. "Wait. What's going on? Who's that?"

The angel took a step back, eyes narrowing now. "What is happening is none of your concern."

Dean was sure that any second he would unfurl his wings again or try to blind him again but he had to take that chance. If that kid was in trouble Dean would be damned before he let this guy, angel or not, get away. "Whose kid is that and what the hell are you doing with them?"

The angel's glare sharpened and the air behind him rippled, as if his wings were fighting to burst out. "This child is my own daughter."

"What?" Dean faltered as his thoughts were thrown for a loop. "What do you mean yours?"

"She is my daughter and if you wish to keep your life you will let me leave unharassed."

"Wait, wait a minute." What the hell? Could angels even have children? If it really was his kid…But still, the kid looked _dead_. Even if they were a young angel that couldn't be healthy. "Alright, she's your daughter. I'm not going to hurt her, or you." And Dean hoped that the angel would return the favor. "But could I take a look at her? It looks like she's…sick." He was pretty much convinced that it hadn't kidnapped a random girl, but his conscience wasn't going to let the thing leave without making sure she wasn't in imminent danger of dying.

"Are you a doctor?"

"No, but I've been around kids a lot and I'm pretty good with a first aid kit." Four years older than Sammy, Dean had practically been a second father to this little brother, maybe more like his only father thanks to their real Dad's long work hours and trips away from home. Dean was pretty sure that thanks to Sam he had already dealt with anything medical a kid could throw at their guardian and since Sammy had lived through to adulthood with no permanent damage done Dean must have done something right. He had had a little more recent practice with Ben when he and Lisa had been living together—but that was a road he didn't want to go down right now.

For what seemed like nearly a full minute the angel had just been staring at Dean, staring hard like he was seeing right into Dean's soul. Finally he gave just the slightest of nods and relented, "Very well, you may look. For my daughter's sake."

Stepping forward before the angel could revoke the invite, Dean carefully peeled the soaked trench-coat off of the figure in the angel's arms. The water-proof clothing of the trench had done its job, the face of the pretty, blonde little girl beneath the fabric essentially dry. There was no way she was any more than eight years old, probably six or seven if Dean had to guess. Her eyes were closed, head lolled up against the angel's chest, but there was no blood or bruising. But you think she would have woken up with all the noise around her. When Sam was little Dean used to joke that he would sleep through a hurricane, but this was a little ridiculous. "She looks fine, except for the fact that she doesn't seem to be conscious."

The angel looked strangely relieved. "I put her to sleep before I began flying. Flight without the use of machines is usually unsettling to non-angels but we needed to leave town immediately. I had no time to think of an alternate solution."

"Right. Well," shit. Dean looked up at the soaking angel then down again at the young girl in his arms. Sending them away would feel like kicking a puppy. A wet, tired puppy with nowhere to go for miles. Earlier Dean would've been happy to send this thing packing, knowing that the highway was two miles away and that it'd probably have to walk another twenty before it reached anywhere with a phone but now…Jesus, Dean's soft heart was gonna kill him someday. Hopefully not today. "Listen, it's too late, early, whatever, for you two to be walking around in this rain. How about you come in and dry off."

The angel's eyes widened before he tilted his head again, examining Dean like he was some strange new animal species. "Why would you allow us in?"

"Don't think I'm happy with doing a monster any favors." Though it felt wrong somehow to call an angel a monster, it was the word Dean's mind came up with anyway. This thing wasn't human and Dean was inviting it into his home. He had officially lost his mind. Even his own justification sounded weak, "It's the kid I'm worried about. No matter what she is, it can't be good for her to be out in this storm."

Dean saw the angel readjust his grip on the bundle in his arms but didn't give it time to respond, instead turning around, picking up his shotgun, and trudging back towards the front of the Roadhouse. He didn't hear any following footsteps over the noise of the rain but when he reached the front door he glanced over his shoulder and the angel was no less than three feet behind him. Wondering again just what the hell he was getting himself into, Dean pushed the door open and stepped inside, the angel following closely.

The sudden lack of rain made Dean realize just how wet he himself had gotten and he quickly stripped off his jacket after placing Ellen's shotgun back behind the counter. He then moved to pull his t-shirt off but his fingers froze on the hem as he remembered he wasn't alone.

The angel was standing across the room, near the now-closed front door, looking about as comfortable as a nun in a whorehouse. Under the bar's fluorescent lights Dean could now see its disheveled black hair, five o' clock shadow, too-big suit, and its lips that were pressed tightly together as its blue eyes did a quick sweep of the room. It was gonna be hard to remember that this thing could kill him with a thought if it always went around looking like an awkward tax accountant.

Hanging his soaked leather jacket up on a peg on the wall, Dean waved towards the angel. "Come on, I'll show you where you'll be staying."

His hand gesture finally coaxed the creature away from the entryway and it followed Dean through a door behind the bar, into the back of the building. As he stepped into the new space Dean flipped on the light, thankful that he had at least picked up his dirty laundry this morning on a whim. The second-hand lamp in the corner of the room flickered on, illuminating the place Dean now called home.

When he had inherited the Roadhouse, Dean had moved everything he owned from the shabby apartment he had been renting into the back room of the Roadhouse. Ellen and Jo had lived there before him so it had already been set up like a small house. In fact, most of the furniture, save for a few essentials like the mattresses, was theirs. The main room was more or less a studio apartment with two doors leading off to the bathroom and a closet-sized second bedroom that had belonged to Jo. It felt almost sacrilegious now as he pointed towards it, "You can sleep in there. The bed's small, but it should be able to fit both of you."

Nodding, the angel's eyes darted around the small space before he took a step over to an armchair pushed into the corner of the room. Then he stopped, hesitating, and his blue gaze flew back over to Dean, "May I?"

Realizing that he wanted to set the kid down, Dean nodded back. "Go ahead and get her settled. I'll go grab some towels so you can dry off. Just don't, uh, don't go anywhere."

Again, Dean didn't wait for a response but slipped back out into the main section of the bar before the logical part of his brain could catch up with what he was doing. Closing the door most of the way behind him to try and further discourage wandering angels, he hurried over to the cupboards where he kept all his towels, his personal towels the same as the ones he used in the bar. Dean grabbed three then remembered just how wet they all were and grabbed half a dozen more. A little overkill was better than everyone dripping water over all of the furniture.

Heading towards the back once he checked everything in the front of the house had been locked up, Dean stopped short as he heard a murmured conversation drifting through the crack in the door. Dean didn't usually consider himself nosy but he didn't think anyone could blame him for eavesdropping.

The first voice he was able to make out was the angel's, his voice lighter than Dean had heard before. "How are you feeling?"

The second voice was definitely the little girl. Dean released a breath he didn't realize he had been holding; she sounded drowsy but perfectly healthy, which was more than Dean had been expecting. "Mmn…Tired. Daddy, where are we…?"

"Somewhere…safe. Out of the rain at least. Are you feeling any after-effects from sleeping?"

"…'m just tired."

"We will get to sleep soon. I just need to get you dry first so you do not catch a cold overnight."

Dean was pretty sure that was his cue and shouldered open the door, doing his best to pretend like he hadn't just listened in on half of their conversation. "Alright, here we go. Go ahead and use as many towels as you need, there's more where they came from."

The angel, who had been crouched done in front of the armchair where his daughter was sitting, straightened up and cautiously accepted a stack of towels. All the lightness was gone from his tone as he stared back at Dean, clearly on edge again, "Thank you. You have already given us more than I could have asked for but I cannot help but ask for more. Do you have some old clothes that my daughter and I can use, just for tonight? If you wish, I can repay you for their use as soon as I am able to acquire some money but," the angel looked down at his soaked suit, "I am afraid these would not be comfortable to sleep in."

Dean blinked. Right. Of course. "Uh, ya." Dean walked the six steps it took to cross the room and rummage through his drawer, "I don't have anything in your size, or the girl's, but I have some old t-shirts that would probably work." What else did people need when they stayed over? It had so damned long since he'd had overnight company, he sort of forgot how it works. How pathetic was it that the first company he had was a monster? Jesus… "I have a comb you could borrow. Unfortunately I don't have any extra toothbrushes or anything but—"

"What you have already given us is more than satisfactory." Turning to the girl, the angel passed her one of Dean's oversized shirts and two towels. "Please take these into the bathroom, dry off as best you can, and change into this, Claire. I ensured that you stayed fairly dry, but we do not need to take any chances now."

"Yes, Father."

The two adults watched as the young girl pushed herself up from the chair, grabbed the fabric in her father's arms, and tripped over to the bathroom, the two left in an uncomfortable silence as the door shut behind her. After what felt like a full minute of just trying not to stare at the angel, Dean cleared his throat, "So…She's awake now. How's she doing?"

The angel blinked, startled to be addressed directly, but recovered quickly. "She seems to be recovering well."

"Good." Well that conversation didn't last as long as Dean had been hoping. What did a guy say to a supernatural creature? Dean was usually pretty skilled at filling awkward moments of quiet, but he was pretty stumped this time. The only thing left to do was to fall back on his natural instincts, which was to turn off his politically-correct filter and just say what was on his mind. "I don't suppose you could tell me why you showed up on my metaphorical doorstep with your kid in tow?"

The angel heaved a small sigh, looking very human as he turned his stare back to Dean. "I suppose I owe you that much at least." Dean waited as it picked up one of the towels himself and spent a moment drying off his face and hair before speaking again. It didn't seem very anxious to share, which of course only made Dean that much more curious. Finally it pulled the towel down around his shoulders, revealing his now-dry, ridiculously mussed hair. Had it not been on something that could kill him with a thought, Dean would have called it sort of adorable. "It is a long story that is…rather complicated."

Dean walked back over to his drawer and pulled out a new shirt for himself. "Give me the abridged version then."

"Very well. I…" The angel let out another small sigh before he seemed to steel himself, squaring his shoulders and relentlessly maintaining eye contact with Dean. "My name is Castiel…Castiel Novak. My daughter, Claire, and I are trying to reach one of my brothers in order to ask for his assistance."

It had a name? Of course it had a name. Other things besides humans had names too, Dean had just never bothered to ask any of them before. Peeling off his drenched t-shirt, Dean replaced it with the dry one then began to dig around for what he really wanted: a pair of dry pants. "You seemed to be in a pretty big rush to get there."

"Yes. The matter is rather urgent. My daughter's safety relies on my ability to find my brother as soon as possible."

Dean paused a moment as his fingers found a new pair of jeans. "That serious, huh? Where does your brother live?"

"The last I heard he was living in Los Angeles."

A low snort burst past Dean's lips and he managed to free the jeans from the tangle of clothes stuffed into the drawer. "You're a long way from L.A., buddy."

"I realized as much when I landed. I had hoped that I would be able to fly further, but…circumstances did not allow it."

Pretty sure that he wasn't going to be told what those "circumstances" were, Dean decided to switch topics. "So what's this brother of yours got that you need? A place to stay? Money? Influence? You figure something as powerful as an angel would be able to handle himself pretty well."

As Dean turned back to face the angel Castiel's head was once again tilted to the side, his expression thoughtful, "From most things in this world, yes. But even we can be harmed. That is why I require Gabriel's help."

Wait, what? "Gabriel? As in _Gabriel_? I thought that was just a Bible story!"

"No, Gabriel is…" Castiel sighed, "very real."

"Is he really an archangel?" And what did that even mean, _arch_angel?

"Yes, for better or worse." Cas continued on as if he had read Dean's mind. Maybe he had. Who knew what angels were really capable of? "An archangel is different than regular angels, like myself, in that they are much more powerful. Their greater power also allows them, among other things, a lifespan far extended past what is considered normal even for angels."

"So this Gabriel you're trying to find really_ is_ the same Gabriel in the Bible?"

"Yes." Castiel hesitated for a moment, what looked like a smile almost flickering across his lips, "Though he has changed much since then. Your Bible does contain a surprising number of historical events along with its inaccuracies and Gabriel was indeed present during the time in question. Gabriel remains one of the most powerful angels of our time and that is why I have been searching him out. If he were willing he would certainly be capable of protecting my daughter."

"Alright." There was nothing alright about that. The idea that there was something more powerful—more dangerous—than an angel living in a place like L.A. was a big freakin' problem. Especially since Dean was almost positive that the majority of humanity was like him and didn't even realize that these things really existed.

Before he could ask any more questions though the bathroom door opened and Claire stepped out, essentially ending their conversation. The shirt she had borrowed from Dean reached all the way down to her knees and it looked like she had dried off about as well as her father had, her blonde hair mussed and hanging in her face. Castiel opened his mouth to speak but his daughter beat him to it, the girl letting out a wide yawn, one hand reaching up to rub at her eyes. "Daddy, I wanna go to bed now…"

"Of course. Go ahead and get settled on the bed, I will be there in a moment after I change."

The girl, Claire, pouted but gave a small nod, Dean and Castiel both watching as she padded off to Jo's old room. As soon as she disappeared into the room, Castiel nodded to Dean before slipping into the bathroom himself. While he was alone Dean took the opportunity to change his own pants, just barely getting them hitched up over his hips when the bathroom door swung back open. Dean turned as the angel emerged, the slighter man looking like he was drowning in Dean's old t-shirt. At least he looked more comfortable. "It's a little big, but at least it's dry, huh?"

Castiel blinked down at his clothes and nodded, "Yes. It is indeed an improvement. Thank you for lending it to me." His eyes drifted back up to Dean's face, "I also apologize. I realized I never asked for your name."

Huh. Dean wondered why it mattered to an angel what one man's name was. But who was he to be rude? "It's Dean, Dean Winchester."

That small, almost-smile snuck across Castiel's expression again as he nodded. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Dean Winchester."

"Uh, ya." Dean wished he could say the same. Castiel seemed like a decent guy, minus the fact that he wasn't a "guy," he was an angel. God damn, what was wrong with Dean's life? "See you in the morning."

OoOoOo

When Dean woke up to the sound of his alarm going off he had stumbled out of bed and into the shower, his body working on automatic. He had gotten dressed, done a quick inventory, and unlocked the Roadhouse before he heard a shuffling in the backroom—and it was only then that he fully came to terms with the fact that no, yesterday was not a dream and yes, there was an _angel_ and its child in his house.

Dean had _really_ been hoping that had been a weird dream.

Castiel and Claire didn't peek out of the backroom for another half-hour. In fact, it was Claire who poked her head out first, the child's curiosity getting the better of the small warning Dean heard Castiel whispering at her. It was only eleven in the morning and there was no one in the bar yet so Dean, always a sucker for kids, waved her over.

A smile lit Claire's face and she hurried over dressed in the clothes she had arrived in, the outfit having had the chance to dry overnight. Dean couldn't help but return the smile, "Hey Claire. How'd you sleep?"

"Good! It was nice to sleep in a real bed!"

Both the angel and his daughter must've been exhausted if they had just woken up a few minutes ago. "Glad to hear you got a good night's sleep in." And Dean actually was. Both Castiel and Claire had looked about ready to pass out where they stood yesterday—this morning, whatever—and now that he was slowly being convinced these particular creatures didn't want him dead Dean was starting to appreciate the idea that he was helping them out.

"Claire!" The door to the backroom swung all the way open as Castiel himself walked out. Like his daughter he was dressed in the clothes he had arrived in but instead of a smile he sporting a disapproving frown. "You should not bother Mr. Winchester while he is working."

Dean almost did a double-take at being called "Mr. Winchester" but instead hurried to the kid's defense as a pout threatened to cross over Claire's face. "Don't worry about it, I'm not exactly busy at the moment. And please, call me Dean. No one calls me anything different."

Castiel walked over to they were standing and tipped his head begrudgingly. It was clear he wasn't used to informality. "Dean, then. Even though you do not currently have any customers, I still feel it would be inappropriate for my daughter to turn your establishment into her playground."

"She's behaving herself so far, huh?" Dean ended his sentence by winking down at Claire. The girl's sullen expression instantly evaporated and she grinned up at him. Looking back up at Castiel though Dean saw that the angel's own expression hadn't changed. "Really, she's fine for now but you're right in thinking that she probably shouldn't be out and about when people start showing up. Both of you should probably make yourself scare actually when customers start arriving. You're both pretty human looking but if anyone catches a whiff of anything supernatural they'll cause you some trouble."

"I had not planned on staying long enough to make it an issue. As I mentioned to you last night, we have limited time and we should probably leave within the hour."

Something about the idea of the two just wandering back out didn't sit right with Dean. As eager as he had been last night to have them hit the road, he no longer felt that it was good enough to simply point them towards the highway and wish them good-luck. "What're your plans?"

Castiel answered back exactly what Dean had been afraid he'd say. "I believe I will be unable to fly us to Los Angeles so we will instead have to depend upon other means of transportation. However, we have no money, so my only thought was to reach the interstate and try and find someone who will give us a ride for free."

Dean raised a brow. "So your plan is to hitchhike to California."

"Yes."

"You know that's like over a thousand miles from here, right?"

"Yes."

Well, at least he seemed sure of himself but Dean still felt the need to point out the obvious. "That could take you days, weeks even depending on how the interstate drivers are feeling. I thought you said you were in a hurry."

Now Castiel just looked frustrated. "It is the only option I can see available to us. As I said before, we have no money and no other means of travel. It may be slow to hitchhike but it will be faster than walking."

"Alright, listen." Again, Dean could not believe the things that came out of his mouth. He wouldn't have imagined that he could make an offer more ridiculous than letting them stay the night but apparently he had underestimated himself. Monsters or not, just the thought of Castiel and Claire having to freaking hitchhike over one thousand five hundred miles to the West Coast kept his mouth running. "Here's the thing; your plan is too stupid for me to let happen. You say you have no money, fine, here's a deal for you. You and Claire stick around for a few days and help out around this place. Wash dishes, sweep, whatever. At the end of the day, you'll get a small cut of the earnings and by the end of the week you should have enough to buy each of you a couple of tickets for a bus that'll at least take you most of the way to L.A. You'll be stuck here for a while, but you should get to where you're going faster in the long run."

Castiel's eyes widened, Claire's wide eyes turning to father as the older angel struggled to find the right words. "I could not possibly—We have imposed on your hospitality long enough as it is. You have been more helpful than I anticipated already but as you yourself have pointed out humanity has little love for things different than them. I could not expect you to do more for us than you already have."

"Hey, I'm just as surprised about this as you are, but the offer's been made. Take it or leave it, buddy. My feelings won't be hurt either way."

All it took was a small tug on his hand from Claire for Castiel to accept. "Very well. Thank you, very much. You are a kind man, Dean."

Dean shook the compliment off, the sentiment making him decidedly uncomfortable. "I'm not that kind, you won't be getting something for nothing. Besides, running this place by himself can wear a man out. A few extra hands around for a while would be a nice change."

"I promise we will both do whatever we can to earn our keep."

When Castiel had made that promise, Dean hadn't given it too much thought, thinking it was just another way to say thank-you but Castiel and Claire both really upheld their end of the verbal contract. In fact, they worked their asses off. For the next two days Claire helped Dean set up and clean up, the little girl racing around to do whatever chore Dean assigned her, and Castiel as it turned out earned more than his fair share once Dean found out that he was good with numbers. Never one to deal with number crunching himself, Dean was happy to give the angel all his paperwork for the month to sort out. What normally would've taken Dean a week to plow through only took the angel four hours to make sense of, making all the trouble and stress of harboring a supernatural creature almost worth it.

In all honesty, Dean just liked having someone, or at least some_thing,_ else around. It'd been awhile since he had had the comforting presence of someone waiting in the back, someone he could talk to if the day had been rough or to gripe about customers to. Dean had forgotten what it felt like to not work alone and how much he had missed it. Admittedly Castiel wasn't the perfect working buddy but what he lacked in basic human social skills he made up for in a sort of subtle earnestness that Dean had only thought Labrador puppies capable of. And then there was Claire who, unlike her father, could talk for hours if you let her, especially once she started getting used to Dean. She acted every inch like a human child and Dean wasn't surprised when he started to grow attached despite himself.

The false sense of security Dean had let himself be lulled into shattered on the fourth morning of the angels' stay, when he walked outside to pick up a few scattered bottles in the Roadhouse parking lot and out of the corner of his eye caught a glimpse of red on the front of the building. Spinning around to investigate, Dean almost dropped the beer bottle he had been holding as he got a good look at it. There, right on the front of the building beneath the Roadhouse sign someone had sprayed a sigil in a dark, blood red. For a sickening moment Dean thought it really was blood until he ran up to take a closer look, but the fact that it was paint didn't do much to dispel his fears. If it was spray painted it had been done by a human, and that meant that someone, somehow, had figured out that Dean was housing something inhuman.

The mark was the stereotypical pentagram, probably supposed to indicate some sort of devil-worshiping. Whoever had figured it out probably didn't know what Castiel and Claire were, just knew what they _weren't_ and in this town that was enough for them to be targeted. Cussing under his breath, Dean quickly gathered up the rest of the bottles in the parking lot then hurried back inside to find some rags and a bucket. If one person in town knew then by the time the Roadhouse opened for business everyone would know. That's just how this place worked. Having such a tight-knit community really sucked sometimes.

Bursting in through the front door, Dean dumped the empty bottles into the recycling, buzzed straight by Claire who had been tasked with sweeping, and marched straight to the bar where Castiel was busy cleaning glasses. "Cas, take a break from those, I need your help outside."

Castiel looked up from his work, his eyes narrowing at Dean's tense tone. "What happened?"

Knowing Claire was probably listening in, Dean just shook his head and tried to lighten his voice. No need to worry her. "You'll see. Nothing life threatening, just a mess that needs to be cleaned up. Grab some buckets from under the bar and fill them half way up with water, will ya?"

Obeying, Castiel snatched up the buckets and without any further questions, filled them, then waited for Dean to collect some rags and a bottle of heavy-duty cleaner before following him outside. As soon as they had the front door closed behind them though he spoke up, his voice low, reminding Dean of when they had first met. "What is this about? I assume you did not want to speak about it in front of Claire."

"Yeah, she doesn't need to know about this." Dean thumbed up towards the graffiti and Castiel immediately found it, his gaze locking on it and glaring at the red stain as if his stare alone would melt it off of the wood paneling.

"What does it mean?"

"It means that someone knows you're here." There was a ladder along the side of the building and Dean went and got it, leaning it up against the front of the Roadhouse so that they would have access to the small wooden overhang that had been built over the front door to shelter people from the rain. The structure wasn't entirely sturdy but he was hopeful that it would still hold the weight of two full-grown men—or a full-grown man and an angel. "Someone knows you're here and they're not happy about it. Now give me a hand and help me scrub it off." Hopefully the paint was still relatively fresh and wouldn't be too hard to take off.

Castiel's frown deepened as he climbed up the ladder after Dean who was happy to see that the overhang could indeed support the weight of two. "Are we in danger?"

Dean added a healthy amount of cleaner to the water then dunked a rag into the mixture. "Not necessarily, but you should probably think about heading out soon." They were in luck. The spray paint was still tacky, not having had the time to fully dry yet, so with just a little elbow grease it came off pretty easily. "I wouldn't take this too seriously though. When we open tonight, I'll have a nice little chat with everyone and tell them to back the hell off."

And a nice little chat Dean had himself indeed. After having to waste two hours scraping paint off of weather-beaten wooden siding, he was grumpy enough thanks to all the sweating and splinters to make him almost bite the head off of the first man that came walking through the door that night. But Dean resisted, doing his best to go on like normal. He didn't want anyone thinking that he had been rattled and not even the furtive glances of his patrons were enough to shake his façade. His patience carried him all the way til ten o' clock when, with nearly a full house of people with terrible acting skills pretending like they weren't sneaking peeks at him, he finally snapped.

Standing back behind the bar, Dean clanged a spoon against an empty whiskey bottle to get everyone's attention, silence falling eerily fast as all eyes turned on him. Unwilling to give in under pressure, Dean passed his own gaze over the crowd, looking over their faces, each belonging to a person he had known his entire life. "Listen up! I know you all know something funny's going on, so I'm just gonna get to the point." In his peripheral vision, Dean checked that the door to the backroom was closed tight. He didn't think there'd be a riot or anything after his little talk but it was better to be safe than sorry. "You probably all heard by now that I've got some visitors this week, and I'm not gonna deny that it's true. And before anyone asks, no, they're not exactly human."

A low murmur ran through the crowd but Dean silenced it with a glare. He wondered if Castiel and Claire were listening in, the thought urging him on. "But that doesn't give any of you a right to complain about it. Especially if that 'complaining' involves damaging my property. Y'all know I don't put up with any kind of bullshit, so I'm politely asking whoever is causing me trouble to knock it off. They'll be gone soon anyway so no one needs to worry about chasing them out of town, understood?"

Dean was answered by a resounding silence and disgruntled glares. You probably could've heard a pin drop clear across the room but Dean waited for one of them to break the silence. Finally someone spoke up, a middle-aged woman who worked at the bank during the day who had never exactly been afraid to keep her opinions to herself. "So if they're not human, what the hell are they?"

"None of your business, that's what—"

Before Dean could even finish, another person interrupted from the back of the room, "Someone said they saw wings!"

"You got a demon back there boy?"

"It figures he would, knowin' his family!"

"_Hey_, that's enough!" Dean's shout broke through the sudden flurry of noise. Damn it, it sounded like someone had seen Cas's wings. He didn't let them out much, maybe only for a few minutes every day when he was alone, but Dean figured that someone had been spying once they learned he had someone over. "They're not demons! You all know I would be the last person to bring a demon into my home after what happened." Besides, Dean wanted to add, demons didn't even have wings. But saying as much would've made him admit to knowing more about demons than he should.

Quiet settled uneasily in the crowd as Dean's words dredged up memories of what had happened to Ellen and Jo. But it wasn't quite enough to soothe their curiosity. "So if they ain't demons, what are they?"

Dean hesitated a good long moment before answering. These were people that Dean had grown up with and even if they had gone about their business in a bad way didn't mean they were bad people. They deserved the truth, even if the truth was ridiculous. "They're angels."

Immediately the noise started back up again, his neighbors' voices filled with disbelief, Dean having to yell again to be heard. "Listen! They're angels, honest to God angels. I know how it sounds, but it's true!"

"I knew angels were real!"

"How do we know they ain't here to kill us?"

Dean scowled, holding his hands up to try to get attention back on himself. "No one's here to kill anyone, no one's looking for any trouble! They're just passing through, okay! So cool down, alright? If anyone has any questions, please just, come up and ask."

No one came up to ask anything. After Dean finished speaking, a good half of the crowd just left the Roadhouse, apparently having heard enough. Those who stayed were bunched together in small groups, whispering amongst each other as they nursed their drinks. The tension was thick enough to cut with a knife but Dean did his best to ignore it. He had done the right thing; there was no reason that _he_ should be nervous.

Five hours had to pass before Dean realized just how wrong he was.

It was three in the morning, the bar patrons long since gone and the Roadhouse locked up for the night. Dean had finally just gotten to sleep after some restless tossing and turning when a sharp noise startled him back awake. For a second he had half a thought that another angel had smashed into the side of his building but the notion was tossed aside as Castiel pulled his door open. He had started sleeping in his own clothes and now looked so wide awake that Dean had to question if he had ever gone to sleep at all. Dean had fallen asleep in his day clothes too but somehow he just looked, and smelled, like a dirty pile of laundry.

"What was that noise?"

Dean shook his head, trying to clear it as he pushed himself up onto his elbows, "I dunno…sounded like glass breaking." Maybe a bottle had fallen off of a shelf; it happened every now and again. "You stay here, I'll go check it out."

Flipping the covers off, Dean had just swung his legs off the bed when a deafening alarm suddenly split the night. Dean slapped his hands over his ears and stumbled to his feet. Castiel's face was tight with barely concealed dread as Claire appeared at his side, gripping her father's shirt with his trench wrapped around her like a blanket. Dean had to shout to be heard above the blaring alarm, "_It's the fire alarm!_" What the hell was going on? "_Hang on, I'll see if I can turn it off!_"

Before Dean could take two steps toward the door that led to the bar, the small window across the room from Dean's bed shattered. Dean heard Claire scream as a bottle flew into the room, whatever was inside the bottle bursting into flame as soon as the glass smashed against the carpet.

Cussing, Dean raced forward to try and put the fire out but it was already burning too hot for him to deal with. With the fire alarm screaming at him, Dean fought to think, to figure out what the fuck was going on. But first they had to get the hell out. "_Cas_! _Claire_! Get outta there! Come on!'

In a second Castiel had pulled his daughter up into his arms and he danced around the building flames. By now the armchair in the corner had caught fire, the flames licking up at the wallpaper and out towards the bed. At this rate they only had minutes before the whole thing went up, the scorching temperature already pricking Dean's skin.

Grabbing his leather jacket, hoping that it would shield his bare skin from some of the flames, Dean yanked it on as he turned back to the door leading out to the bar, the only way out. Dean reached for the doorknob only to jerk his hand back, "Shit! It's burning hot!" It had to mean that the front room had caught fire as well, that first crash probably another Molotov cocktail being thrown into the building.

Castiel was now right at his side and with one hand holding Claire tight against his chest he used his other to reach around Dean and grip the doorknob, his face showing no reaction to the blistering heat. "We do not have the time to hesitate." Dean watched with wide eyes as Castiel ripped the door open, reminding Dean again the he wasn't even close to human.

As soon as the door opened the world seemed to freeze in front of Dean's eyes for the span of a single heartbeat. Then the growing inferno behind them exploded into hellfire, propelling Dean through the doorway and skidding across the hardwood floor of the bar. Rolling over, Dean tried to regain his breath but all he sucked into his lungs was smoke. He knew Cas and Claire had to be somewhere nearby but all Dean could see as he pushed up onto his hands and knees was fire. Fire swallowing up the tables, the walls, the bar counter.

"God dammit!" Forcing himself into a crouch, Dean scanned the room for the two angels as he tried to cover his mouth and nose with his sleeve. His gaze finally found Castiel few feet away, his body curled protectively around his daughter's. He hadn't been thrown as far as Dean, but he didn't look entirely unscathed either, his clothes and hair singed.

Coughing, gasping for air, Dean tried to call out to them, tried to do _something_ but before he could even move an ominous groaning reached Dean's ears over all the other noise. Already dreading what he was going to find, Dean looked up to search out the source of the sound. Jesus Christ. The ceiling. The fire had worked its way up the wooden paneling and had already reached the ceiling, and one of the heavy wooden support beams looked ready to snap. As it was hanging right over the two angels.

"_Cas! Move!_"

But the warning was too late. Castiel had just enough time to look up before the beam gave out and came crashing down. A moment before it hit the ground Dean swore he saw a flash of black before the Roadhouse was filled with embers, smoke, and dust.

Dean felt like he was hacking up a lung as he lurched to his feet, "Cas? Cas! _Claire_?"

"_Dean_!"

Thank God. Tripping over piles of charred debris, Dean made his way over to the fallen beam and found Cas and Claire. Castiel was pinned underneath the beam, the flash of black Dean had seen explained as his large wings beat against the wooden beam, the floor, anything in his large wingspan that might help to free him. Claire had tumbled to the side, undoubtedly thrown away from the beam by her father's last ditch effort to escape the impact.

Castiel's blue eyes were crystal clear and showing every ounce of his panic as embers sparked against his black feathers, "Dean! I can't—this fire, it's—"

"Hold on, I'll get you out!"

"No, get Claire out!"

Dean shook his head, thoughts scattered as he desperately tried to figure out how to get Cas out. "I'm not just leaving you here to burn!"

"Take her!"

"Cas—!"

"_Take her, Dean!_ She won't survive the heat or the smoke!"

There was something in Castiel's voice that Dean just couldn't disobey. That, and his worry for his daughter was almost palpable. Against all his instincts, Dean turned from Cas and scooped Claire up into his arms. There was a wall of flames blocking the front door but Dean barreled through it as Claire clutched her arms around his neck, too scared to even speak. She let out a sharp whimper as he jumped over the fire even though he was moving fast enough that it shouldn't have hurt.

The front door was locked but Dean didn't have the time to go looking for the keys and instead hit the wood hard with his shoulder. The blow was strong enough to knock the thirty-year-old lock from the doorframe and Dean and Claire spilled out. When Dean got them both right-side back up, Claire was sobbing, tears streaking through the soot that had covered her face, "Dean! My daddy!"

"Don't worry, I'll go get him! Don't move, you hear me?"

Castiel had told him to get Claire out, but he hadn't said anything about Dean not coming back in. Leaving Claire in the parking lot far enough away from the flames that she wouldn't be in danger, Dean sucked in his last breath of clean air then ran back into the Roadhouse. The heat which could be felt all the way outside hit him like a brick wall but he pushed through.

In the short span of time he had been gone, the situation had only gotten worse, more dangerous, and it took Dean longer than he wanted to weave his way through the collapsing pieces of roof and wall. When he finally reached Castiel the angel was still trapped, his face tightened in pain. His wings were still out but now Cas had them drawn as close to his body as he could manage with half of his body covered by the beam, the feathered appendages shuddering as the fire drew closer. He seemed…like he had given up.

"Cas! Hang on, I'm gonna get you out of there!"

Castiel's head snapped up, his eyes going wide in shock. "Dean! I told you to—"

"—To get Claire out, I know! And I did. Now it's your turn!" Dean stared at the beam pinning Cas down as his heart pounded in his chest. How the hell was he going to do this? He was going to get himself killed playing hero! "I'm gonna try and get this off of you!"

Following his gaze, Castiel winced, trying weakly to shove the beam off himself but as soon as he touched the burning wood he jerked his hands away. Whatever trick he had used earlier with the scalding doorknob wasn't working for him now. With their time running out fast Dean didn't want to wait for Cas to get his act together. Steeling himself, Dean grit his teeth then leaned down and grabbed the beam.

The muscles in his arms and back pulled tight as he strained to lift the heavy slab of wood, a shout bursting passed his lips as his palms began to burn from the embers still crackling in the beam. It weighed a ton but the adrenaline that had been pumping through Dean's veins ever since he woke to the shattering of glass gave him the strength he needed.

Slowly, excruciatingly slowly the beam lifted off of Castiel's body. Cas gasped as the pressure finally let up enough for him to wiggle his way out, his wings flaring as he fought to get free. Dean coughed as the rush of air from his wings kicked up a flurry of ash, his fingers beginning to slip on the rough wood, scraping at his skin. "Hurry it up, Cas!"

"I'm free Dean, you can let go!"

As soon as the words hit his ears, Dean's grip gave way, the beam crashing back down to the floor, sending sparks flying out in every direction. Castiel lurched back, his usual grace gone. Seeing that the angel was having trouble even standing upright, Dean grabbed his arm and swung it over his shoulder, hauling Cas to his feet. "Hang on, we're getting out of here!"

Dean didn't remember how they got out of the collapsing building, only flashes of orange and red, the feeling of being baked alive, and Castiel's harsh breathing against his neck. The next clear thought he had was lowering Castiel to the pavement of the parking lot, leaning him up against the Impala. Claire was there, grabbing her father's arm and crying against his shoulder and the Roadhouse…Dean looked back. The Roadhouse was burning, flames shooting up nearly twenty feet from the roof as the wood snapped and crackled. The light from the fire lit up the early morning sky, casting an eerie orange glow as everything Dean had worked for over the last half of his life burned down to the ground. He heard sirens in the distance but it barely registered, his gaze stuck on the hellscape in front of him.

Someone had done this, had done this to him, intentionally. Someone he knew, someone he had trusted. Someone who had wanted two angels dead more than they cared about him or the Roadhouse.

But no matter what they thought, what everyone else in town thought, Dean _knew_ he was still in the right. He had saved two lives today and even the life of a monster had to be worth something. Had to be worth even this.

Didn't it?


	2. Chapter 2

Huge thanks go out to everyone who reviewed the last chapter: ChaosGarden, egyptian1995, Alpha Kan't Spell, keiko-uchiha, Pilali, and ramen-is-my-goddess! I appreciate all of your feedback more than you know; it makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside every time I see a new comment. ^_^

O

* * *

><p>Chapter 2<p>

* * *

><p>Dean watched the Roadhouse, his livelihood, burn for a few seconds more before realizing that the world was continuing on without him. The sirens he had half-noticed were growing closer. A neighbor must've seen the flames and called the fire department, not that they were going to arrive in time to save anything. The only things that would survive that fire were Dean, Castiel, Claire, and the clothes on their backs.<p>

Right! Cas, Claire! Shit, last he saw they weren't doing so well. A look to his right confirmed his fears; Cas was leaning back against the side of the Impala, his skin pale underneath the black soot streaking his face and his wings hanging limp behind him. Dean could smell burnt feathers from where he was sitting and there were patches of angry red across Castiel's arms, chest, and back where the fire ate through his shirt. While Claire was dirty but mostly unharmed thanks to Castiel and Dean's fast action, her father was obviously suffering through a good deal of pain.

Turning his back to the flames, Dean crouched down next to the angel, "Jesus, Cas, we need to get you to a hospital."

"N-no, I…"

"As soon as the fire fighters get here they can call for an ambulance. Come on, put your wings away, we don't need the firefighters flipping out on the job—"

"Dean…!" Castiel cut Dean off with a low, broken growl, "I can't!"

"Can't _what_?"

Dean didn't realize he had been glaring until Castiel glared back. "Do either."

Beside them, Claire was beginning to calm down but was clearly aware that her dad was still in pain. "Daddy, please! If, if you're hurt you should go see the doctors!"

"Dude, she's right." At least one of the Novaks was thinking straight. "You definitely got the worst of it. Now you can cooperate or not, but either way I'm getting your feathery ass to a hospital." Reaching out, Dean went to grab Castiel's arm to pull him to his feet but stopped as the angel's wings flexed defensively almost like they had a mind of their own.

Immediately Cas let out a sharp hiss, his body curling up on himself as Dean jerked his hand away, "Shit! Sorry! Sorry, but this sorta proves my point!"

"No. No, I…" Castiel's jaw tightened as he leaned back, his head resting back against the paneling of the Impala. "No doctors. No hospitals. The oil, the fire—it damaged my wings. I cannot hide them until they are healed and human doctors would only—" Cas's voice caught in his throat, "…they wouldn't help."

"Well I'm not just going to leave you like this. The fire truck'll be here in like thirty seconds and they're not exactly just going to look the other way either."

"Then you must not let them see me."

And there was that serious tone again, the one Dean just couldn't say 'no' to. It had to be a freakin' angel thing. With Castiel leveling him with his piercing stare and Claire looking up at him with her wide eyes for direction, Dean had no choice but to just give in and do _something_ because the fire truck was literally a block away by the sounds of it and they did _not_ have the time for this right now. "Fine, whatever!"

He reached his hand into the pocket of his leather jacket but his heart froze as all he touched was his thin wallet. If they weren't there then—Jamming his hands into his pants pocket, Dean dug around for the keys for the Impala. Please God, please, let him have forgotten to clean out his pockets before he fell asleep in his jeans—Yes!

As his fingers wrapped around cool metal, Dean used his free hand to pull Castiel off of the car door and onto his feet. He tried not to disturb the burns on the angel's arms or wings but small grunts of pain still slipped passed Castiel's lips. His serious expression never wavered though so Dean pretended not to hear the angel's moans as he wrestled the back door of the Impala open and all but shoved Cas inside. Dean's heart rate began to pick up again as he began to push Cas's wings in after him while trying not to do any more damage. Then he saw the fire truck whip around the corner. Muttering a curse, Dean forced the rest of the feathers inside, pushed Claire in after them while ignoring Castiel's agonized gasp, and slammed the car door shut.

Spinning around, Dean had never been more relieved and more annoyed to see an emergency vehicle in his life. The lights and sirens seemed weak in comparison to what was going on in the Roadhouse, Dean's senses and thoughts still overwhelmed. Nevertheless, as soon as he saw firefighters beginning to pile out Dean willed his legs to carry him away from the Impala and toward the truck. He didn't need to give anyone a reason to check his backseat. The firefighters barely acknowledged him as he stumbled over to him, just ordered him to stay back so they could do their jobs.

They did their best but as Dean watched them try to battle the inferno that had swallowed his building he knew how this was going to end before they even had a chance to tell him. There was nothing anyone could've done to save the Roadhouse, not with how fast and hot that fire had been burning.

Dean just stood and stared, watching the fire slowly die for what felt like an hour before he noticed just how tired he was. With a murmured excuse and good-bye to the firefighters, he turned his back on the blackened ruins of his home and, before anyone could start asking any questions, walked back across the parking lot. The Impala was waiting for him right where he had left it, as were its occupants.

Opening the driver's side door, Dean slid into the leather seat, his hands immediately moving to clutch at the steering wheel, desperate for something calming, something familiar. He wasn't sure how long he sat there but the moment ended as he heard someone move in the backseat, Cas's large wings shifting in the rearview mirror. The reminder that he wasn't alone snapped Dean out of it, his brain kicking back in as he realized that they couldn't just stay in the parking lot all night. Not in the shape they were in.

Dean pulled the keys back out of his pocket and started the car up, his hands working on automatic. "Alright…buckle up back there. We don't need any more injuries tonight."

Claire let out a small noise of compliance and there was the tell-tale click of two seatbelts snapping shut. Then Cas's graveled voice echoed back at him, almost hesitant. Maybe he was just tired. "If you could drop us off somewhere…quiet, safe—"

Dean didn't even let Cas finish his thought, "No! No, I'm not just going to leave you on the curb." Reaching over across the front seat, Dean yanked the glove compartment open and riffled blindly through the miscellaneous crap he had store in there. After a few seconds of searching he found what he was looking for: a money clip with ten twenty dollar bills tucked inside it. Dean's emergency stash of cash…He had never would have thought that this was how he was going spend it. His wallet was empty so this was going to have to tide them over for a while.

"I assure you, as bad as my injuries may seem to you, I will heal within the next few days. I have checked Claire over and she is fine, so you need not feel any sense of—"

"Cas, shut the hell up." Snapping the glove compartment closed, Dean straightened back up, his lips pressed tight into a determined line. "This is what's going to happen now: I'm going to drive to the motel and get us a room, grab the first-aid kit from the trunk, and do what I can for your burns since you and your fucking wings decided that you can't go to the E.R."

"…Do I—?"

"—No, you don't have a choice!"

As soon as he had climbed into the driver's seat, it had hit Dean what had actually happened. The Roadhouse, the only thing left for him in this godforsaken town, was gone. He didn't even have any good memories here anymore. This was where Jo and Ellen had been murdered, where Lisa had outgrown him, where his mom and then his Dad had died. He had no family, no real friends here, nothing that could even remind him of them. And even faced with all that nothingness, no matter how hard he tried, Dean couldn't find it in himself to blame the two angels currently filling his backseat. He couldn't even regret helping them in the first place.

Dean could feel Cas's weary gaze drilling into the back of his head as soon as he pulled out of the parking lot and he tossed a glance up to the rearview mirror. "What is it?"

"I just…do not understand."

"What?"

"You, Dean Winchester. Despite everything that was just taken from you, you still wish to help us. Why?"

Dean wished he had an answer for that. "'Cause," Dean shrugged, "It's…the right thing to do." And maybe it was all he had left.

The rest of the short car ride was quiet, Claire eventually falling asleep tucked up in Castiel's trench coat and Castiel keeping any more questions to himself. When they reached the motel, a ramshackle row of squat rooms that easily accommodated the four tourists their city had over the course of the year, Dean released a long breath and parked the Impala, silencing the comforting rumble of the engine with a twist of the key. Turning around to look into the back Dean had to mask a wince, his body beginning to feel the full impact of the trauma it had gone through that night. But he would be damned if he complained about aching muscles when he was in the company of a burn victim. "Cas, I'll run into the office and get us a room. Stay here and try and look inconspicuous until I get back, okay?"

Castiel blinked back at him, one of his wings draped over his daughter while his other was jammed uncomfortably against the car window. "In this condition, I do not believe I could get very far if I had wanted to. It is also unlikely that I will be able to be any less conspicuous than I am now."

"Right." Dean couldn't really argue there. Not that he really had the energy to argue anyway.

The elderly man behind the front counter gave Dean a strange look as he walked into the office. He knew Dean—of course he knew Dean, everyone in their small town did—but Dean didn't offer a single explanation for the soot and ash covering his skin and clothes or the burns on his palms, just slapped thirty bucks on the counter top, signed the register, snagged the key ring from the shocked motel manager's lax grip, and walked out. It took decidedly longer to wrangle Castiel into the motel room. His large black wings were anything but convenient and Dean actually had to wake Claire up to get her help so that he wouldn't hut Cas any more than was necessary.

Between the two of them and a minor miracle they managed to get the angel inside. The room itself was small with old but clean furniture. Most of the space was taken up by the two double beds and a small table and TV stand crowded into one corner while the far wall was taken up by the enclosed bathroom. Cas immediately sent Claire to the shower which was probably a smart move. Dean was pretty sure that if Claire so much as sat down on the bed she'd fall asleep again without getting the chance to even wipe the grime off of her face. Castiel himself looked like he was having enough trouble staying alert as he perched himself on the end of one of the mattresses, claiming the bed closest to the bathroom as his own.

Dean let him rest for a moment as he stepped back outside to the car. They obviously didn't have any bags to take in but there was one thing Dean wanted to grab from the trunk and that was the first aid kit. The Impala had had a kit in her trunk since Dean was a little kid, his Dad deciding that with all the trouble his boys got into it was best to have an emergency supply nearby at all times. It had come in handy just enough times that Dean had continued the tradition, updating its contents every other year or so to keep up with expiration dates.

Finding the first aid kit right where it was supposed to be, Dean closed the trunk then headed back inside. Castiel eyed the box in Dean's hands with mild curiosity as he stepped over the threshold but his attention drifted up to the door as Dean closed it, locked it, and then fastened the chain. No one was going to get in without having to go through a little trouble first. Dean didn't know if he was being paranoid or not as he made sure the curtains were drawn tight but he figured he'd earned the right to a little paranoia after his place was firebombed.

Satisfied that the room was as secure as it was going to get, Dean waited for Claire to get out of the shower before initiating the next phase of his plan. He didn't have long to wait, the shower shutting off soon after he had the place locked up. A minute later Claire emerged from the bathroom in nothing but a towel, having left her smoke-scented clothing on the tiled bathroom floor. Before Cas could even open his mouth to offer any more instruction, Claire immediately jumped onto the bed she and her father would be sharing and buried herself underneath the covers. The poor kid had gone through a lot; Dean couldn't blame her for just wanting to curl up and go to sleep.

Dean and Castiel both watched until the rise and fall of her chest evened out, Claire mercifully falling asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow. As soon as Dean was sure she was passed out he nodded for Cas to come join him on his bed, keeping his voice low, "Alright, lemme take a look at those burns."

Castiel shifted hesitantly on his bedspread for a moment before giving a light nod and sliding across to sit next to Dean. His wings gave a nervous twitch as Dean pulled the first aid kit onto his lap, the move not going unnoticed by Dean who decided it'd probably be best to start with Castiel's non-wing appendages. There were certainly a few patches of skin on the angel's arms and chest where the fire had scorched right through Castiel's clothing that needed to be attended to.

Flipping the first aid kit open, Dean dug around for the burn cream he knew he had tucked away in there, "Roll up your sleeves, I'm gonna need to get the actual burn to do any good."

Cas frowned but did as Dean asked, Dean frowning right back as he saw the full extent of the damage. "Jesus, it looks like that oil crap stuck to you like napalm."

"That is not a bad comparison actually." Dean applied a healthy amount of the burn ointment, Cas only letting out a small, almost annoyed sigh, "That was no ordinary fire. The oil used was of a special variety; it originates from Jerusalem and is one of the few things that can harm an angel. In time we will heal from our burns but if I had continued to be trapped within the fire I would have been unable to escape and would have been consumed in flame. Whoever set that fire knew what they were doing."

Castiel's tone had been emotionless but Dean was positive he could see fear spark in the angel's blue eyes. "I figured one of my neighbors had set it but, I dunno," Dean gently turned Cas's arm over so he could get at the damaged underside, "that oil doesn't seem like the type of thing that would be readily available to Joe Farmer."

"While not sold at your average grocery store, I am afraid that type of oil is fairly accessible via the black market. Few human know the extent of the damage it can do to an angel but, again, with some research the information would not be extraordinarily difficult to find."

So basically any of them still could've done it. For a second there, Dean had hoped that his neighbors had been in the clear but so much for that. These people had watched him grow up for chrissakes but they apparently didn't have any trouble trying to kill him.

Realizing he was done applying the burn cream to Castiel's right arm, Dean switched to his left. "So if it's the fire that would kill an angel, why were you worried about Claire dealing with the heat and smoke? She should've been able to survive those alright."

Dean felt Cas's body tense up underneath his hands and knew that he had hit on a sensitive topic. That only made him all the more curious though, so he didn't retract his question, just waited for Castiel to answer.

After a good minute and a half Castiel's head drooped a little, his arm flexing in Dean's hold. "I…have not been completely forthcoming with you about our situation."

"Now seems like a good time to fill me in, don't you think?" Dean hadn't meant it to come out snappish but Cas's wings gave another slight jerk at his tone before pulling in closer to the angel's body, the involuntary reaction causing Castiel to wince. Dean knew both of their minds had just gone back to the Roadhouse in flames. After all that Dean had gone through for these freaking angels, he at least deserved the truth.

"I have never lied to you, just never told you the whole truth. Claire and I are indeed trying to reach my brother, but we are also running which is why her safety depends on how fast we can find him."

"What are you running from?"

"A few ambitious demons, but mostly from angels."

"Wait, come again?" Dean's fingers froze as he worked his way to the underside of Castiel's left arm. "Why the hell would you be running from angels?"

Cas sighed again, this time the sound low and mournful, "Because of Claire, because of what she is."

Okay, now Dean was confused. "I thought she was an angel."

"Not quite. Claire is what you would call a nephilim, half-angel, half-human, her mother of course the human and I the angel. Her mother, Amelia, and I, we…" Castiel paused and Dean let him have his moment. He suspected where this conversation might be heading and the least he could do was give Cas a minute to figure out how to say it. "We fell in love, I suppose. As you might imagine, it is not something…proper for an angel to have done, but no one, not even angels, can control who they fall in love with. As soon as we learned she was with child we married and I took her family name, to show my devotion to her and our unborn baby."

Dean couldn't help the question, "What was your last name before that?"

"I did not have one; angels do not have surnames."

Silence fell for a few more minutes and Dean switched his attention from Castiel's arms to his chest. Somehow the knowledge that this creature had fallen in love, had freaking _married_ a human, made him more…made _him _more human and Dean found himself treating Cas's burns with a little more care. Cas's wings had relaxed a little too, whether from Dean's slightly more gentle touch or simply from getting his story off of his chest. The most prominent question in Dean's mind now was of course what happened to Amelia Novak. Fortunately, or unfortunately, Castiel didn't keep him in suspense for long. "Amelia died giving birth to Claire."

"I'm sorry, man." And Dean really was. "That must've been rough."

"It was, at the time. It was a startling reminder of how fragile humans are, how fleeting their lives…" Castiel shook his head, "But the pain of her passing has mostly subsided; I accepted it as truth years ago, soothed with the knowledge that she is in a better place. And I was left with Claire who has helped considerably to heal the wound."

Coming back to Claire, "Why would angels and a handful of demons want to get at Claire anyway? So what if she's a nephilim or whatever, she's a good kid."

"Unfortunately they do not see it that way." As he spoke, Castiel's gaze turned towards where his daughter was tucked away under the covers, "To the other angels, Claire is a dangerous creature. Imagine a nuclear reactor being contained in a paper bag—that is essentially what she is. When she fully matures she will be able to wield nearly the same amount of power as an angel but with the control of a human." By Cas's tone, Dean assumed that humans were thought to have little or no control.

He was about to make a snide remark about it but he had just noticed that he had finished with the burns on Cas's chest and it was time to move onto the next set of burns—on his wings. Castiel blinked as Dean cleared his throat, the angel quirking a brow as Dean moved so that he could more easily reach the other's back. "What is it?"

"I, uh." Dean cleared his throat again. He needed to man up and just do this already. They were just wings, attached to a guy, no big deal, right? "It's time to do your wings. Can you spin around?"

It might've been Dean's imagination but he would've sworn that the angel blushed a bit. Either way his wings definitely reacted, the feathers almost rippling like a bird trying to puff itself up. Before Dean could ask if the angel just wanted to do it himself though, Castiel turned so that his back was facing Dean, forcing his wings to unfold just enough so that Dean could access all the burnt areas.

Dean sucked in a breath then got down to business, reminding himself again that this didn't have to be weird if he didn't make it weird as he began to rub the burn ointment down into the feathers along the ridge of the angel's right wing. Cas held as still as a statue so Dean thought he was doing alright, that was until he noticed Castiel's hands clenched in his lap. "What's the matter?"

"I, I am not used to needing time to heal. Usually even burns such as this would heal within an hour."

Dean heard the tremor in the angel's voice but didn't call him on it. "Yeah? So what's holding your mojo back now?"

"I…" Castiel's voice shuddered and Dean's fingers froze as they were working through Cas's feathers, afraid he'd hurt him. But then Castiel continued speaking so Dean continued working the ointment through his wings. "When Claire's power began to manifest I separated from the Host, from Heaven, and thus my abilities have been greatly limited."

"Why?"

"Angels, normally we can…we can sense each other. Hear each other. We are…connected by our minds on a similar wavelength. It is difficult to explain in any human language. But I essentially have removed myself from the fold in order to make it more difficult for them to locate me and my daughter. While it was necessary it has made it impossible for me to do what would've been relatively easy tasks like heal, fly properly, or locate Gabriel."

"So, what, you disconnect from Angel Radio and your other privileges are revoked?"

"Yes."

"That sucks."

"Y-yes."

Okay, his voice was shaking again. Dean was definitely doing something wrong. "Sorry. Are you sure I'm not hurting you?"

"N-no. It's…" a short breath burst passed Castiel's lips and the angel wouldn't meet his eyes. "It's not that. They…they're sensitive."

"Huh? Oh." _Oh_. Jesus Christ. He apparently had just spent the last ten minutes giving an angel the equivalent of a hand job. Great. Now Dean was blushing.

Finishing up as fast as he could, Dean tried to look anywhere but at Castiel as he tossed the now-empty burn ointment bottle into the trash. "Well, I've done everything I can do, so hopefully it'll help."

The angel glanced back over his shoulder and flexed his wings experimentally, Dean's embarrassment lifting a bit at the pleased look on Cas's face. "I believe it already has. Thank you, Dean."

"Uh, no problem." It really didn't feel right to be thanked for molesting an angel. "Let's just get to sleep, alright? We've got a long day tomorrow."

Castiel cocked his head to the side as he moved back over to his own bed. "What is happening tomorrow?"

"I'll tell you in the morning."

OoOoOo

The reality of it was that Dean hadn't had a plan when he went to bed that night. He had been hoping that something would just magically come to him in a dream when he was asleep but he had been so tired that after lying down on the motel bed the next thing he remembered was waking up feeling like he was covered head to toe in grime. Along with coming up with a plan he probably should've showered last night too.

Castiel and Claire were both fast asleep when Dean stumbled into the bathroom though Cas's wings were gone, hopefully meaning that they had healed. At least one thing had gone right. Nearly tripping on the pile of clothes Claire had left in there last night, Dean kicked them out into the main room before shutting the door.

All but falling into the shower, Dean rested his forehead against the tiles as hot water began to pound down onto his shoulders. What the hell was he going to do now? There really wasn't anything for him here. The only thing he had left in his life was Sammy, but he was all the way out in California and Dean hadn't talked to him for years…

Wait. California. Dean jerked his head away from the tiled wall and was rewarded by getting blasted in the face with scalding water but it was worth it. It looked like he had a plan after all. After everything that had happened, Dean wanted, _needed_ to catch up with his brother who happened to live in the same state his two angel tagalongs were heading to. Knowing exactly what they were up against, Dean had been wrestling with the thought that he'd have to let them deal with it on their own but if he was going to California anyway he might as well give them a lift.

Feeling infinitely better about his near future, Dean scrubbed himself down, getting all the smoke smell out of his hair, before turning off the water. After toweling dry, Dean dressed then stepped out of the bathroom only to find that one of his roommates had woken up. Just not the roommate he had been expecting.

"Dean!"

"Hey, Claire." The little girl was sitting in the chair in the corner of the room in her pajamas, kicking her feet that didn't quite reach the ground. A quick glance at her bed showed that Cas was still out like a light, his face buried into the pillow. Turning his attention back to the young nephilim, Dean offered her a half-hearted smile. Even knowing what she was, Dean noticed that his affection for her hadn't changed. "How are you feeling?"

"Better." Her blue eyes narrowed in concern, the expression looking nearly identical to her father's. "Are _you_ okay?"

"I'm doing alright." Casting a glance back at the angel still asleep, Dean sat down on his own bed and patted his lap, "You want me to braid your hair for you?"

Claire looked at him like he had just spoken a foreign language then in the blink of an eye was on her feet, her head nodding enthusiastically as she rushed over to him. Dean chuckled as she plopped down onto his lap and grabbed the rubber band he had noticed holding a small stack of brochures together on the end table. "You act like you never got your hair braided before."

"Daddy doesn't know how."

Dean had to laugh again at the idea that an angel couldn't figure out how to braid of all things. Then again, Dean had no business knowing anything about it either but after growing up with Jo for a best friend you picked some things up. And look, it turned out to be a good thing since it's was keeping Claire occupied. Not that Dean had any problems entertaining a kid. When he and Lisa had been together, he and her son Ben had spent more than a few hours just hanging out.

He had always liked kids. He liked how easy they were to please, how funny they thought his jokes were, and he liked taking care of someone who needed it. Dean tried not to think about how every kid reminded him of Sammy when they were younger, about how much he missed having his brother around.

This time though, he let the thoughts wash over him, knowing that he'd be seeing Sam in a few days. Which reminded him, they needed to get on the road soon if they wanted to make good time. "Hey," finishing the braid off with the rubber band, Dean gave it a playful tug, "how about you wake your Dad up and show him how beautiful your hair is?"

"Okay!"

A laugh threatened to escape Dean for the third time that morning as Claire all but launched herself onto the next bed, landing directly on top of the slumbering angel. Castiel startled awake, Dean watching as his electric blue eyes snapped open before his view was obscured by Claire who had just crawled up so that she was face to face with her father. "Daddy, look how Dean did my hair!"

Cas's voice sounded low and rough when he answered back, like he had just gargled some asphalt—or had just had some really great sex, Dean's mind supplied. Damn it, he needed to keep his mind out of the gutter while there was a kid around. "That's, nice."

It was clear Castiel had no clue why she was so excited or why he had been woken up so Dean decided to fill him in. "Up and at 'em, Sleeping Beauty. We've got to hit the road soon if we want to reach Cheyenne by tonight."

The angel's brow furrowed as he nevertheless swung his legs out from underneath the comforter, one hand mindlessly moving up to stroke Claire's hair as she clung to him. "Why would we be going to Wyoming?"

"'Cause I figure taking Highway 80 is the fastest way to get to California from here."

"Cali—You are driving us to California?"

"Looks like it."

"Why?"

It was such a simple question but Castiel had asked it with such a force that it would've felt like a sin to answer with anything but the truth. So Dean just threw his arms out and shrugged, "Got nothing better to do with myself. The least I can do is help you guys out. Besides, I've decided I'll be heading in that direction anyway, so it makes sense."

Castiel's shoulders sagged and Dean couldn't tell if a weight had just been taken off or added. "I, I do not know what to say—"

"How about 'thanks, we'd love a ride'. By the way, wasn't kidding when we said we have to hit the road. I'm leaving in five so you'd better be ready by then."

Cas blinked up at him, looked around the room, down at Claire, then back up at Dean. "I am already prepared to leave."

"I'm ready too!"

Dean grinned down at Claire as her hand shot up into the air and she smiled back, "I guess we don't exactly have any bags to pack up, do we? Let's head on out then!"

Four hours later found them just west of Lincoln, Nebraska with Dean behind the wheel of the Impala, Cas sitting shotgun, and Claire sprawled out in the backseat. When they had stopped in the city for gas, Dean had used an old credit card that wasn't entirely good anymore to "purchase" some clothes so Dean wouldn't have to run around without a shirt on under his jacket and all three of them could change into something that didn't have any burn marks on them. Dean had even given Castiel and Claire free reign to pick out whatever outfit they wanted since, hell, he wasn't paying for it. Claire had picked out a cute day dress and Cas, well, Cas picked out some slacks, a white button-down shirt, and a blue tie. The exact same thing he had before except not deep fried. If he hadn't looked so damn confused when Dean had asked him about it, Dean would've made him pick something different.

After their little shopping run Dean had gotten them the hell out of town before the store realized they had just been robbed and now here they were, bad memories behind them and the open road in front of them. It was times like these when Dean remembered just why he liked driving so much. It was freeing.

Like most kids her age, Claire had nodded off in the back seat, the rumble of the Impala's engine lulling her to sleep and leaving Dean and Castiel sitting in a comfortable silence. At least it was comfortable until Cas starting shooting Dean these little, furtive glances when the angel thought he wasn't looking.

They had just passed the turn off for Grand Island when Dean finally snapped, only able to withstand an hour of the unanswered questions that he could feel building in the air between them. "If you've got something to say Cas, just say it. I'm human, remember? Not a mind reader."

The angel's lips pressed together in a frown as he turned to stare out the front windshield as they passed by another corn field. "I am simply trying to understand. You say you are doing this because you have no better way to spend your time but this is far more costly to you personally than would be reasonable for someone doing another person a favor. You hardly know us, and what you do know does not exactly encourage you to continue to do so much for us."

"Don't overthink this. Like I said, I was heading this way anyway." Though Dean wondered whether or not he would've just made up some other excuse if Sammy hadn't been living out on the West Coast.

"You never mentioned any intention of traveling to California before."

"Yeah, well, things changed last night if you didn't notice." Alright, again Dean hadn't meant that as a guilt trip but it sort of came out that way. "This morning when I woke up I realized that it was about time I visited my own brother and since he's going to Stanford it makes since that I give you two a lift, right? I'm spending money on gas anyway, might as well take a few passengers."

"…I suppose." Dean's response seemed to satisfy Cas a little, some of the tension melting from his frown. "This brother of yours, he is in school then?"

Dean couldn't tell if Cas was trying for small talk or to find out a little more about Dean but he didn't mind either way; he never was one for silence and if he tried popping in one of his music tapes it would probably only wake Claire up. "That's right. Law school. He always was the smart one."

"Are you close?"

"We used to be real close. Our Dad, he, he worked a lot so I would be left to take care of Sam most of the time. We were hardly ever apart actually. But, you know, kids grow up. Sam started to want to do his own thing and then when he was around sixteen, he…" Dean's voice trailed off, unsure if he wanted to continue. A glance to his side though showed that Castiel's eyes were on him, patiently waiting with that damned earnest expression and Dean figured what the hell. Angels were supposed to be all empathetic and shit, right? And Cas might meet Sam soon anyway, so he was going to find out anyway.

Letting out a breath, Dean settled back against his seat, his hands gripping the steering wheel as he tried to put his attention back on the road. "When Sammy was about sixteen he started to change. It was little things at first, hardly noticed but...He started getting migraines, getting angrier; I guess being a half-demon will do that to a guy."

Castiel let out a surprised little grunt but Dean, who was ready for a holy rebuke, heard no judgment in the sound, just interest. "You must have had a demon somewhere in your family history then."

"Yeah, my grandpa on my mom's side. But, anyway, it was pretty unexpected and Dad, he just didn't know how to handle it. Hell, I didn't either. I was still growing up myself, you know? Sammy, he was sort of forced to deal with it on his own and before I knew it he had turned eighteen and left on a plane for college." Dean shot Cas a weak smile, "Can you believe that kid got into Stanford with a full-ride scholarship, despite the fact that he had demon blood in him? You have to mark that shit down in your application papers but he was still good enough to get in."

Cas sent him one of his barely-there smiles back. "You seem very proud of him."

"Yeah, yeah I am. I never, really told him, but I am." Hell, Dean hadn't even called his brother since he left. The only contact they'd had was when Sam had sent him a single text message with the address of his new apartment in Palo Alto. Dean had looked it up. It seemed like a nice place, close to campus and in a good neighborhood. But all he had written back was "Be careful." That was the only thing he could think of that he needed to say.

"I am sure he knew."

"Yeah. Maybe."

OoOoOo

The next two days passed as uneventful as a day could be when a guy was spending it in close quarters with an angel and a half. It was true that Dean had spent nearly a full week with Castiel and Claire already but you never really knew someone until you roadtripped with them. For example, it turned out that when Claire wasn't sleeping in the car she was physically unable to sit still for more than fifteen minutes. If she kicked the back of his seat one more time Dean swore he was going to snap, adorable puppy eyes or not. And then there was Cas who was stranger than Dean had first given him credit for. Where Claire was unable to sit still, Cas might as well have been made of marble. The guy didn't even twitch and, if Dean didn't try to get a reaction out of him, seemed perfectly content with just staring straight ahead for hours on end.

Between the two of them, by the time Dean stopped each night at a new motel he was ready to hit the hay. Salt Lake City passed in a blur, and after a nine hour drive to Reno, Nevada the next day Dean had never been happier to see a shitty motel bed. Luckily now that Castiel had his wings stowed away Dean was able to send him out for food instead of having to venture out himself. God bless the man, er, angel, for remembering Dean liked bacon cheeseburgers because it tasted like heaven after a long day on the road.

Actually, that second night on the road had been almost…nice. For a few hours Dean was able to forget about everything he had lost, forget that demons and angels alike were gunning for Claire, forget that Castiel and Claire weren't anything unnatural, and just relax. They had finished their dinner in the motel and had the TV on, watching whatever came on the five channels the piece of crap television picked up. Dean was sprawled across his bed while on the bed next to him Cas was sitting propped up against the headboard with Claire sitting in his lap. He had had to fight off a grin at their identical expressions as both Novaks gave one hundred percent of their attention to Dr. Sexy's exploits on the screen.

That delicate sense of peace that they had fallen into of course didn't last long.

When Dean woke up the next morning it only took him half a second to realize that he wasn't the first one up today. Rolling his head over, his cheek pressed against his pillow, Dean blinked his eyes open and saw Cas sitting at the rickety desk near the TV with a newspaper spread out in front of him. And when he spotted the serious frown on the angel's face Dean seriously contemplated just falling back asleep. That look couldn't mean good things…

But putting it off probably wasn't going to help the situation. Letting out a soft groan, Dean pushed himself up onto his elbows, blinking the morning light out of his eyes as he glared blearily at Cas. "By the scowl on your face, I'm guessing you got some bad news."

Castiel barely spared him a glance, his eyes glued to the paper in front of him. "You would be correct."

"Great…" Dean released a wide yawn before all but crawling out from underneath his warm covers. You know you had low standards when motel linens felt this good. Reno's dry, cool air hit his bare chest and Dean grabbed for his shirt, pulling it over his head as he walked over to the angel. "What's wrong?"

Castiel looked up at him again then back to where Claire was starting to show signs of waking. "We, may have a problem."

"What is it?" There were way too many things that could cause them problems at this point. The first of many possibilities that Dean came up with was that they would get a repeat of what happened back in his hometown. "Did someone here figure out you two are angels?"

"No, it is not the humans who worry me in this city."

Dean didn't like the way that sounded. "Then what _is_ worrying you?"

"Demons."

"What?" He couldn't have heard that right. Dean could've sworn that Cas had just said—

"Demons." Well, shit. He did. "There have been a number of demon signs reported in this area recently and I am worried that they are beginning to close in on us."

Dean's heart sped up as he subconsciously glanced over to the windows as if expected glowing red eyes to be looking back at him. It was one thing for Castiel to say that demons were trying to kill them, another thing entirely to hear that they were actually nearby and closing in. "How? I thought you were untraceable or whatever?"

"For the most part, yes, neither angels nor demons should be able to detect my presence but Claire is growing stronger by the day and it is possible that they are beginning to sense her. They may not even know what it is yet, just that something unusual is passing through." Cas looked away from Claire, met Dean's gaze and held it tight. "It is imperative that Claire and I find Gabriel quickly, otherwise we are endangering both ourselves and you."

"Okay." Again, nothing was okay, at all. No way were they ready to have a demon encounter. They didn't have any weapons and Cas, who normally probably could kick some ass, was still recovering from his burns and wasn't one hundred percent yet. Dean let out a breath. "Okay, I get it, but we're only a few hours away from where Sam's staying. I promise I won't stay long, just say hello, maybe grab a beer with him, then we can keep heading south. We'll get you down to Gabriel in time, Cas, don't worry."

"Dean, I did not say what I did in order to pressure you. I said it because it might be time for Claire and me to continue on our own."

Dean rolled his eyes as he stepped away from the angel; they didn't have time for this. "Come on, Cas, don't start this again. I've already come this far with you, I'm not just ditching you both unless I have a damn good reason to."

Even with his back turned, Dean still knew that Castiel had that serious frown back on his face. "I do not think that you grasp just what sort of danger you are putting yourself in by continuing to be in our presence."

Shrugging, Dean walked towards the bathroom. He wanted a shower before they hit the road again. "You're probably right." And Cas really probably was. The only direct experience Dean had ever had with demons had been through Sammy, and that was still pretty tame given the stories he'd heard, like what had happened to Ellen and Jo. "But I've never let not knowing something stop me before."

"Dean," Castiel had lowered his voice into something a little more reproachful and Dean hated how it made him slow his steps, "I have been too grateful up to this point to question any of your decisions, but I must insist that you take a moment to truly consider your continued association with myself and Claire. _Demons_ are coming closer and I cannot ensure your safety in my current condition."

Stopping at the door to the bathroom, Dean pretended to mull it over. But he had decided days ago what he wanted to do and Dean Winchester wasn't anything if not stubborn. When he got it in his head that he was going to do something, he was going to do it, obstacles be damned. "Alright, thought about it and I'm still driving you guys to Los Angeles."

"_Dean_—"

"Wake Claire up, will ya? We'll be leaving in ten."

By the time Dean got out of the shower and dressed, Claire was awake and ready to go and Castiel was waiting sullenly by the door. Cas could pout all he wanted; Dean knew him well enough by now to see that his shoulders weren't as tensed as they had been. The angel was happy Dean was coming with them, whether he admitted it to himself or not.

Dean shot the angel a grin as he walked out of the room, Castiel's glower deepening as Claire bounced out after him. In turn, the car ride was even more quiet than usual but Dean found it hard to care as he turned back onto Highway 80, heading west toward Sacramento.

Within half an hour of leaving Reno's city limits a sign passed by announcing that they had just entered the state of California. Dean barely blinked as they continued down 80 and dropped down out of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, the reality that he was only a few hours from meeting Sammy again only fully hitting as road sign in Sacramento suddenly announced that there were 85 miles to San Francisco.

Holy shit. Dean wanted this to happen but…holy shit. The last time he had seen Sam was when he was twenty-two, Sammy was eighteen, and his brother had walked out of the Winchester home to catch a bus to the airport with a bag slung over his shoulder.

Dean didn't notice that his grip had tightened on the steering wheel until Castiel decided to break his self-imposed silence. "Is something wrong, Dean?"

"I'm not having second thoughts about sticking with you, if that's what you're worried about."

"…Is it the prospect of meeting your brother again?

Dean sighed and glanced up in the rearview mirror to find Claire watching him curiously. There was no way that Dean was going to initiate a chick-flick moment. "It's nothing. I'm fine."

Castiel let out a small hum and Dean was pretty sure he hadn't fooled anyone.

"Dean, how much longer do we have to drive for?" Thank God for kids' short attention spans.

"Not long, Claire. Just another two hours or so and we can take a rest break."

"Okay…"

Even with Claire fidgeting in the back, those two hours rushed by way too fast for Dean and in _far too short_ a time he found himself pulling the Impala up to the curb in a suburban Palo Alto neighborhood less than a mile from the Stanford campus.

Dean stared up at the apartment complex, feeling like the building itself was about to attack him as he put the Impala into park. He had used the address Sam had sent him so many years ago so…hopefully this was still the right place.

Though there was a small part of Dean that wondered if he wouldn't mind it if Sam had already moved.

"Dean…?"

"Right! Sorry, what?"

Castiel had the nerve to look amused. Or was it concerned? Somewhere in between. "I asked if you were going to go to the door."

"Yeah, of course."

"…Dean. It has been three full minutes."

"I'm, just making sure I have the right address!"

"…Would you like me to go with you, Dean?"

Claire giggled as Dean finally broke his staring contest with the apartment complex to glare at Castiel instead. "No, Cas, I don't need you to go with me." Then again…Dean looked back over at the apartment building. "But, it'd probably be better if you came anyway. It'd, uh, be good if you weren't a surprise."

Now Castiel was definitely amused. Damn, he probably could've sold that one a little better. Turning around, Dean looked back at Claire, "Can you wait here for a few minutes while we see if my brother Sam is home?"

Claire's bottom lip stuck out in a light pout but she nodded anyway. "I guess so…"

"Good girl. Come on, Cas, let's get this over with."

"Whatever you say, Dean."

Castiel still sounded smug and it annoyed Dean to the point where he almost forgot about how nervous he was as he climbed out of the Impala. Almost. Running his hand through his hair, Dean checked behind him to make sure Cas was following before starting up toward the apartment. The concrete walkway was well-swept, the recently cut grass on either side clearly kept up by the apartment complex. Not that Sam wouldn't have been able to take care of a lawn, it was just he never really had a green thumb when they were growing up and—Crap. He was already at the front door.

Steeling himself, Dean knocked on the door before taking a few nervous steps back and tucking his hands into the pockets of his jeans. His stomach was tied up in knots so tight it almost hurt to breathe. He shouldn't be this freaked out—it was Sammy for crying out loud—but, it had been so long since they'd actually talked face to face and they hadn't exactly left on the best terms.

What if Sam turned him away? Just slammed the door in his face? Dean didn't think he'd be able to deal with that. He didn't deal with emotions well in general and he was half certain that the only reason he hadn't raced back to the Impala after knocking was Cas's presence at his back. Good fucking God, why hadn't Sam answered the door yet? If he had answered his freaking door by now Dean wouldn't have had the time to actually think everything throu—

Dean abruptly cut his own thoughts off as he heard footsteps coming towards the door. He did his best to force a light smile on his face but was sure it looked more like a cross between a constipated grimace and an apologetic smirk as the door swung open and a shaggy-haired giant stuck his head out.

Any witty greeting Dean might've come up with vanished from his mind as Sam's gaze locked with his, both brothers standing with twin looks of surprise on their faces. Finally, after what must have been a full five seconds of staring, Sam finally spoke, his voice strained, "Dean?"

Dean's throat felt tight as he took his brother in. He had, he had grown up. "Hey, Sam."

Sam swallowed, "Dean," his brow furrowing in confusion, "what are you doing he—?"

Realizing that Dean wasn't alone, Sam looked over his brother's shoulder and whatever he had been about to say stuck in his throat with an odd choked gasp. As soon as his eyes landed on Cas his pupils were swallowed up by an inky blackness and Sam reeled back like he had been punched in the gut.

"_Sammy_?" Dean's older brother instincts kicked in and he immediately reached for his brother as Sam fell back against the door jam, his hands clutching at his forehead. "Jesus, Sam, what's wrong?"

"Wh-what are you…" Dean wrapped his arms around Sam's shoulders as he sucked in a sharp breath, blood trickling from his nose, "Dean, what the hell are you doing with an _angel_?"


	3. Chapter 3

Sorry about taking a few extra days to get this next chapter out! I've starting work now and my days are long, leaving me far less time to write. I'm still hoping to keep up with a weekly(ish) update schedule, but if you want to keep closer tabs on me I'll probably be posting updates on my Livejournal (accessible via the "homepage" link on my author's page). Enormous thanks are required for: egyptian1995, supreme dramon, Fallen Darkness, Pilali, ramen-is-my-goddess, and ChaosGarden! Thank you for reviewing! Did you ever know you're my heroes?

O

* * *

><p>Chapter 3<p>

* * *

><p>"I apologize, it is undoubtedly my presence that has caused your brother pain."<p>

Cas stayed in the corner by the front door as Dean hustled his brother back into his apartment, pushing Sam down into a chair and tilting his head back. Sam's inky black eyes slid shut as he listlessly obeyed, his face still screwed up in pain as his lanky body sprawled down onto the couch. He had gotten taller since Dean had last seen him, and that was saying something. "No shit, Sherlock."

Glancing up at the angel, Dean saw a look of genuine guilt on the man's face and shook his head with a sigh, "Don't be too hard on yourself, Cas. You didn't know this would happen."

"But I should have anticipated—"

"It's okay." Dean and Cas both looked down at Sam as he spoke, his voice strained but already sounding a little stronger. "It's okay, I just—wasn't expecting..."

A groan rumbled up from his throat and his eyes flickered back open, a breath Dean hadn't realized he had been holding rushing out as two normal, human eyes met his. It looked like Sam had been able to fight off whatever had happened. "…Dean, there's a napkin on the side-table. Grab it for me?"

"Yeah, sure." Leaning over, Dean snatched up a spare napkin and, already guessing what it was supposed to be used for, pressed it against Sam's bloody nose, holding it there until Sam reached for it himself. "You wanna tell me what just happened?"

Cas shifted in the corner, still looking decidedly uncomfortable. "I believe I can explain. The demon-side of your brother was reacting to me. Angels and demons have a rather…long and antagonistic relationship and when we encounter each other we tend to respond somewhat strongly to each other's presence. I was anticipating the meeting so I had prepared myself but your brother was obviously caught unaware."

Frowning, Dean turned back to his brother to confirm and watched as Sam blinked his eyes as if to make sure they had really switched back. When he noticed he was being watched, Sammy shrugged. "What he just said. That's…never happened to me before. I've never met an angel before."

"You okay now?"

Sammy paused, blinking a few more times as he did a mental check. "Yeah, yeah, should be." There was another pause as Dean dubiously stared down at him before Sam broke the silence by clearing his throat, pushing himself up to sit up a bit straighter. "Sorry about that. Uh, so, Dean, what _are_ you doing here?"

Assured that Sammy wasn't going to pitch forward in a dead faint or go demonic on his ass, Dean took a step back to give his brother a little space. "What, not happy to see me?"

Sam's answer was instantaneous, "Of course I'm happy to see you. It's just that, well, it's not like you've ever just dropped by to say 'hello' before. What are you doing in California? Not to mention with a, with…"

Realizing that Sam was floundering for a name, Dean thumbed back towards Cas, "This is Castiel Novak. Cas, this is my baby brother, Sam Winchester."

Cas managed a polite little nod. "Hello, Sam. I apologize again. I should have had your brother call ahead to warn you."

Sammy shook his head, his floppy hair going everywhere. "Like I said, it's okay. I'm only half demon, so, it wasn't too bad. Besides, Dean should've figured out that calling ahead would've been a good idea by himself."

Dean struggled to keep a smile off his face at Sammy's tone. It had been so long since he had actually talked to his brother. Why hadn't they talked? It was hard to keep his voice serious now that the tension was starting to ease away as they slid easily into their familiar banter. "Look, we were in a rush and the trip was pretty sudden, I didn't exactly have the chance to think through all the details."

"Which reminds me, you still haven't told me what you're doing here."

"Well stop interrupting and I'll get to it, bitch."

"Jerk."

"Um," Dean and Sam both looked up as Cas's voice reached them, "we could just…move on, if our being here is causing trouble."

"What? Oh," Dean had been so caught up that he hadn't realized that to an observer he and Sam probably sounded like they were about to start throwing punches. The grin he had been fighting finally spread across his lips and Dean shook his head. "Nah, this means we're getting along."

Cas looked unconvinced until Sam let out a soft laugh, those eyes that had been a solid black minutes ago now shining happily, "He's right, Castiel. You can stay for as long as you need, as soon as _someone_ tells me what the hell is going on."

Dean rolled his eyes. "I'll get to it, alright? Cas, go ahead and get Claire out of the car and bring her inside."

As Cas dutifully stepped back outside to do just that Sam's brow pinched up in confusion. "Who's Claire?"

"His kid." Sam's eyebrows shot up and Dean held up a hand, "I know, an angel with a mini-angel, it's weird."

"'Weird' seems like an understatement." Before Dean could reply, Sam continued to speak, "but any friends of yours are welcome in here. Even angels."

Meeting his brother's gaze, a small grin lit Dean's face. "Thanks, Sammy. Sorry for springing this on you, but we won't be here long."

Hearing that, Sam's curiosity was definitely piqued but before he could ask any questions his front door opened up and Cas came back inside, Claire trailing in after him with her fingers curled up in his sleeve. As soon as she stepped through the doorway her eyes were glued onto Sam, suddenly shy and hesitant. Dean wondered if she was picking up on her father's emotions because Cas was definitely on guard, even more so than when he and Dean had first met. But maybe they were both on edge because of Sammy; they were both looking at him like he was something dangerous.

Sam seemed to sense their defensiveness too as his face softened to the point where he looked about as threatening as a box full of puppies. Dean tried to match his brother's expression, wanting Cas and Claire both to know that Sammy wasn't going to hurt them. The fact that they even _thought_ that _Sam_ would hurt them almost made Dean burst out laughing but he was pretty sure that wouldn't do much to diffuse the situation. "Claire, this is my younger brother, Sam. Sam, this is Castiel's daughter, Claire."

The younger Winchester brother had always been better at expressing empathy and Dean was happy to see that nothing had changed in that regard as Sam nodded towards Claire. "It's nice to meet you. Knowing Dean, I've bet you've been on the road for a while now, huh?" Claire gave a small nod and Sam smiled encouragingly, "If you're hungry, I can make us all something for lunch."

Claire nodded again, growing a little bolder as she clutched at her father's shirt. "Do you have ice cream?"

Her question caused Castiel's eyes to narrow and Dean could tell he was a second away from reprimanding his daughter when Sam interrupted, "I think I have some in the freezer. If it's alright with your Dad, you can have some after lunch, alright?"

Apparently Dean's trust in Sam and Sam's offer of ice cream was all it took to win the little girl over to their side. As soon as the acquiesce left Sammy's mouth Claire began to revert back to her normal personality, her eyes widening as she turned her eyes up to her father and tugged on his sleeve. "Can I, Daddy?"

"I, suppose." It looked like Cas couldn't come up with a good enough excuse to say no.

Sam glanced over to Dean for help but all Dean could do was shrug. This was just how Castiel was, he couldn't change it. Apparently Sammy got the message, a soft huff escaping him as he pushed himself up back onto his feet. "Okay. I guess I should go see what I can make for lunch."

Dean watched as Sam made his way back further into the apartment, heading towards what must've been the kitchen. "Need any help?"

"No, just, uh, get everyone comfortable."

Looking back at Castiel and Claire, who were still standing by the front door, Dean seriously doubted that was going to happen any time soon. As soon as Sam had disappeared into the next room though, Cas actually moved from his spot and walked over to where Dean was standing by the couches. Left to herself, Claire began to inspect the sparse collection of photos on the walls as Castiel leaned in close to Dean and whispered, "Dean, are you certain that we can stay here?"

If he hadn't gotten used to the angel's issues understanding the concept of boundaries, Dean would've taken about three steps back as Castiel leaned right into his personal space. As it was, he decided to pretend it was normal that he didn't mind having the angel almost literally in his face. "One hundred percent, Cas. I'm thinking you don't like it here, so we don't have to stay long. I just want to talk to Sammy for a bit before we take off."

"Aw, we're driving again?" Dean looked over to find Claire staring straight back at him, her bottom lip stuck out. "I'm tired though, I don't wanna drive anymore today."

Dean tried to fight off her pout with an easy grin, "Sorry Claire, but we've got to keep moving. We only have one more day of driving though, so we'll be able to rest soon."

From here, L.A. was about a six hour drive, maybe less if he didn't exactly follow the speed limit. It was only a little after noon so Dean should be able to get then down south by the end of tonight if he pushed it after they left Sam's place. But with demons on their ass a little night driving seemed like the least Dean could do.

Dean was therefore thrown off guard when Castiel furrowed his brow a little like he disagreed with Dean's decision. Crossing his arms over his chest, Dean just watched the angel and waited for him to speak up, tired of trying to psychically divine what Cas was thinking. Finally Castiel seemed to notice Dean's look—which honestly shouldn't have taken this long since they were still standing less than three feet from each other. "A short rest may actually do us all some good, Dean."

"Hold on, _you_ were the one going on about needing to get down to L.A. as soon as possible and now you want to take a break right when we're half a day's drive away?" He didn't want to say that demons were after them out loud with Claire standing so close, not sure if she knew the full extent of what was happening, but Dean was pretty sure Cas got the message.

Castiel frowned then met Dean's gaze, blue eyes staring into green. "We have, already made better time than I could have hoped for. Allowing you a night to reconnect with your brother seems the least we can do to show our gratitude." Dean just stared back at the angel as he continued, "And it is true as well that we have been on the move for a while now. It should be safe for us to take a moment to rest and regain our strength before we reach the end of our journey."

Dean was pretty sure that last bit was just a bunch of bullshit Cas had said to make Dean feel better. Apparently the angel was willing to put himself and his daughter in danger just to give Dean a couple of hours with Sammy. Jesus, how was he supposed to respond to that?

He didn't get the chance to find out as Sam suddenly poked his head back inside the room, "How do sandwiches sound for lunch?"

Still trying to figure out what to say, Dean was beaten to the punch by Castiel, the angel tearing his gaze away from the elder Winchester brother to look at the younger, "Sandwiches sounds good, Sam, but would it be too imposing to ask whether we could spend the night as well?"

Sam looked about ready to pee his pants with excitement at being addressed directly by Cas. Dean found it hard to blame the guy; he himself had been almost certain that the angel didn't care much for the half-demon. "Sure, no problem! I'll get things ready for lunch, so go ahead and make yourselves at home."

OoOoOo

The rest of the day had been surprisingly painless. After they ate lunch, Sam took them out and showed them around town. It was clear that the tour was mostly for Dean's benefit, to give him a better idea of where Sammy had spent the last five years of his life, but Castiel and Claire both seemed to at least appreciate the chance to stretch their legs. Ever since Sam had bought Claire off with ice cream the young girl had quickly adjusted to his presence. Castiel was slower to warm up to Sam but as the day wore on the stiffness slowly melted from his shoulders.

Seeing the angel and his brother start to become more comfortable around each other lifted a weight off of Dean's mind and he felt himself growing more at ease. He grinned as Sam showed them the library where he admitted spending one too many nights at instead of going to the bar down the street. Then again, Sam was able to name off every bar in downtown Palo Alto so Dean figured he must've been enjoying himself at least a little bit between study sessions.

Before Dean knew it, night had fallen and they were back inside Sam's apartment. Time seemed to pass quickly whenever he was on the road but spending the afternoon reconnecting with his brother had made it absolutely fly by. Now Dean found himself back in Sam's living room, both Winchesters lounging on the couch with a beer in their hands. Castiel and Claire had retired upstairs for the night after Cas had insisted that Claire get to bed early in a ridiculous obvious attempt to give Dean and Sam some time alone. If Dean hadn't been so thankful he would've thought it had been hilarious in a sad sort of way.

Dean had wanted to speak to his brother one-on-one for hours now and he could tell that Sam was anxious for the same. Not that he blamed the kid; Dean had only glossed over what had happened over the last week and a half so he knew Sam had to be curious. They had a lot more to talk about than that though.

Sam was the first to break the semi-comfortable silence that had settled between them. Slouching back into the couch cushions, he took a long, slow drink from his beer bottle before looking over at Dean, his expression carefully neutral. "So, uh, Dean. What've you been up to?"

Really? That's what he decided to start with? Then again, it's not like Dean had come with anything himself. That didn't stop him from giving a stupid answer to a stupid question. "Oh, you know. Meeting angels, running from demons, the usual."

Sam rolled his eyes at Dean's smirk. "That's not exactly what I meant. I…" As Sam's expression sobered, Dean had a feeling that they were about to get right into it. He wasn't sure he was ready to go there. "I read about what happen to Ellen and Jo in the papers. I'm sorry, man."

Shit, right for the throat. Taking a long drink, Dean tried to fight back the images Sam's words conjured up: blood splattered everywhere, Ellen lying in a puddle of gore, Jo's face disappearing as her broken, torn form was zipped up into a body bag. That had been the second worst night of Dean's life.

"Yeah, me too." Sighing, Dean lowered his beer bottle into his lap then lifted his gaze to meet Sammy's. "We missed you at the funeral."

Sam had the good graces to look guilty but what came out of his mouth next made Dean feel like an ass. "I _wanted_ to be there. I was going to go but…I figured that since they were killed by a demon I'd be the last person the rest of the town would want around."

Dean really had been hurt that Sam hadn't even bothered to show up to the funeral of people who had been close enough to be blood so he hated—absolutely_ hated_—to admit it but Sam staying away had probably been for the best. After seeing the way the town had treated Castiel and Claire, Dean didn't even want to think about what they might've tried to do to Sam. Dean took a swig of his beer and decided it was best to just change the subject. "What about you, Sammy? How've you held up out here in the real world?"

Sam's expressions changed so fast, so subtly, that if Dean hadn't practically raised the kid he probably would've missed it. Then Sam's face became carefully neutral and Dean was suddenly worried about what his answer might be. Sam looked so healthy, so like himself, that it hadn't crossed Dean's mind that Sam's life had been anything but perfect since he'd left.

"It's…had its ups and downs."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, I, uh…" Sam lurched forward to try and reach for the TV remote, "you know, it's a long story, maybe we'd better just leave it."

"I don't think so." Pushing the remote out of Sam's reach, Dean raised a brow as he turned back to look at his brother. When half a minute passed and Sam still hadn't looked back up from the floor, Dean nudged him gently with his knee. He didn't like that there was something Sam didn't feel comfortable sharing. It made that worried feeling tighten in Dean's gut. "Start talking, Sammy."

Knowing he wasn't going to be able to stop this conversation from happening, Sam let out a long sigh and flopped back against the couch. "Fine...When I first moved out here, things were pretty actually pretty good. I, met someone."

"Oh yeah? What's their name?"

"Jessica." Sam's gaze softened enough to tell Dean that he was really in love with the girl. "I met her in one of my G.E. classes and within two months I had asked her to move in with me."

Huh. "Sounds like you were serious."

"I was."

Noting the past tense, Dean took a subtle look around the apartment. Definitely no signs of a woman living here now, so that meant something had gone wrong. And taking in Sammy's sudden silence, things had gone wrong in a bad way. Taking another swig of beer, Dean nodded toward his brother, "Try not to worry about it too much, Sammy. I know it's hard when you're serious and things don't work out but—"

Sam glanced up and interrupted him with a raised brow, "Really?"

"Yes, really. Don't look so surprised, I _have_ been in a few long-term relationships."

"With who?"

"Well, there was Cassie, spent a few months with her. Then Lisa." Dean heard his voice soften, "Spent a whole year with her."

Sammy's incredulous expression had melted away into concern. "What happened?"

"She, uh…decided that I wasn't the right sort of person to have in her life." But that was enough about that. "What about you? What happened with Jessica?"

"She, died."

Dean felt his stomach drop down to about his knees. Fuck, he shouldn't have asked. Sam picked at the label on his beer bottle and Dean almost wanted to tell him to shut up as he kept on talking. "Came home one night and found the fire department waiting. The bedroom had caught fire and she, hadn't made it."

"Jesus." To have your girlfriend die must be bad enough but to know she went out like that…It was also eerily similar to how Mom, how had their mother had passed away. "I'm sorry."

Sam shook his head and gave Dean this weak smile that was so full of self-hatred that Dean had to look away. "Don't be. It was my fault."

That brought Dean's gaze back to his brother. "How could it've possibly been—?"

Sam just shook his head again, his eyebrows pinching together as he cut right into Dean's sentence, "My, demon abilities had started growing stronger and I had, started hanging out with the wrong crowd. A month before the fire I, got hooked on demon blood."

Dean couldn't believe what he was hearing. Demon blood was basically like a drug, a seriously messed up one that killed most human users on their first try. The only ones who really got off on the stuff were half-human, like Sammy, but he never would've—Dean had been sure that he'd never—"Christ, Sam! What the hell are you thinking? That stuff could kill you!"

"I know!" His brother wouldn't meet his eyes anymore but he kept talking, like a dam had been broken and now the words were just flooding out, "I know, it's just…it was available and I was curious. Then it was the only way I could deal with what happened to Jess. My friends, the people I hung out with, some of them were demons and they told me it'd help and I…I don't know. I guess I was desperate. I started dating one of them, a demon named Ruby, but after a few months one of her friends let it slip that," Sam swallowed, "that _they_ had actually set the fire that had killed Jess. As a _joke_. The next day I broke up with Ruby and got into detox. It was hard, really hard…I actually thought I was going to die during a few points from withdrawal, but, I got through it, especially once I got my acceptance letter to Stanford's law program. Ever since I guess I've just been trying to, put myself back together and focus on school again."

By now Dean had his head in his hands, his beer left on the end-table as he tried to form a coherent thought. He had never thought that Sam, his baby brother, would've ever had to go through something like that. Even when Dean had let himself think about what Sam was up to, what sort of trouble he could be getting into, he had never imagined…What the hell kind of brother was he that he didn't even _know_ any of this shit was going on? "Man, if I had actually been there for you, maybe—"

"No. No, I'm…I'm glad you weren't."

Dean's head snapped up, his hands waving in front of him as he yelled at his brother. "But I could've fucking helped, Sammy!"

"You didn't see me then! I was…I was just so deep into it. I'm glad you didn't have to see me like that. And more than that, I don't think that I would've even listened to you. You probably would've gotten hurt and, I don't think I could live with myself now if that had happened."

"But still, I—Dammit, you could've just picked up the phone! Why didn't you call?"

Sam's frown deepened. "I thought it was my thing, something I had to do alone. And it's not like I was exactly thinking straight. But let's just…" He took a deep breath and sighed, "Can we talk about something else? It's over now, alright?"

"Is it?" Dean didn't know a lot about demons and their freaking blood but he did know that addictions were hard to kick and one as bad as demon blood had to be damn near impossible to get rid of.

"_Yes_, it is. I got clean over four months ago and I just want to, to put it behind me. To move on." Some of the guilt that was tearing a hole through Dean's chest must've shown on his face because Sam's expression softened. "Look, I shouldn't have even told you this. None of it is your fault Dean, you know that, right?"

"Yeah, right."

"Anyway, the important thing is you're here now, we're both here _now_ and both of us have things in our past we don't want to go back to. We talked about them, now we can leave them behind and refocus on our current problem: getting Cas and Claire to Gabriel."

"_Our_ problem? You coming with, Sammy?"

A fraction of the dark feelings rushing through Dean's veins dissipated as Sam gave him what Dean had termed his "bitch face" when he was thirteen years old. "Of course! After hearing everything that's been going on with you, Cas, and Claire, I don't think that you should do this alone, Dean, and I want to help. I don't know them that well but, Claire…I," a small, sad smile flickered onto Sam's face, "I guess I can identify with her or something. I want to make sure she's safe."

"You know this won't be easy and could take a while. Wouldn't want to interfere with your busy student life."

Sam didn't let himself rise to Dean's attempt to start an argument. "The next Quarter doesn't start up for another two weeks, so I have some spare time. And I know it won't be easy, but that's kind of the point of why I'm going with you. Besides, how much money do you have?"

"Uh…" Dean scowled and snatched his beer back up. He had exactly six bucks left in his pocket from that emergency stash of twenties in the Impala. "Can't remember."

"You don't have any money left, do you? After you told me that the Roadhouse burned down, I guessed as much." Sam met his brother's gaze, eyes a little lighter than they had been a few minutes ago, "At least let me come with you so that all of you will get something to eat on your way down to L.A."

Dean would've tried to convince his brother to stay behind, would've at least _tried_ but Sammy seemed set on tagging along. If Dean was being honest with himself he also had to admit that the idea of him and Sam together again as brothers sparked a feeling in his chest so warm and comforting that he felt something that had broken inside of him being stitched back together. Not that he was going to tell Sam any of that; this was already turning out to be enough of a touchy-feely moment as it was. So he settled on rolling his eyes, "Alright, fine. We're leaving bright and early tomorrow morning, so you better be packed up and ready to go."

OoOoOo

As settled as Sam had been for the past few years, he was still a Winchester and had a packed duffle bag waiting by the front door by the time Dean woke up and rolled off the couch. Sam had one guest room in his two bedroom apartment but Dean had given it up for Cas and Claire. That way they hopefully got a full night's sleep for their big day and he had free access to the rest of the beer in Sammy's fridge after everyone went to bed. That had been a great plan until now. The hangover he had was going to make for a fun six hour drive.

Glaring blearily at the bag, Dean pushed himself up to his feet and stretched, his mood lifting somewhat as the smell of coffee hit him. He followed the scent into the kitchen to find everyone else looking way too alert and chipper for five thirty in the morning. They were all sitting around the kitchen table, Sam with a mug in his hands, Cas with a newspaper, and Claire with a bowl of fruity looking cereal that Dean would have to tease Sam for owning once he got some caffeine in his system. When he caught sight of Dean shuffling in, Sam's face broke out into a grin, "Looks like you had a good night, Dean."

"Bite me." Falling down into the remaining empty chair, Dean murmured a clipped word of thanks as Cas slid him a cup of coffee. Taking a long gulp, Dean shivered as the warm, bitter liquid slid down his throat and gave him the energy he needed to actually start a decent conversation.

"So…what's the plan for today?"

Cas looked up from his paper to meet Dean's eyes. "Weren't you going to drive us to Los Angeles?"

"Yeah, I mean after that. What's gonna happen when we get there?"

"I will find Gabriel."

Dean resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Can you be a little more specific than that?"

"Not at this time, no."

Cas kept a straight face the whole time, letting Dean know that he unfortunately wasn't joking. "Glad it's not my problem then."

"None of it is your problem."

"Cas, just—" Dean held up a hand and downed about half of his coffee in one go. "It's too early to get into this. You and Claire ready to go?"

Now the angel just looked confused. Apparently it was too early in the morning for him to try and keep up with Dean as well. With a small huff, Castiel shook his head and answered the question. "Yes, Dean, we are ready to leave whenever you are."

"Good." Shifting his attention to his brother, Dean finished the rest of his coffee. "Sammy, you still coming?"

"Yeah."

"Then lock this place up and meet us out in the Impala. If we play our cards right we might get back here from L.A. before dark." Being optimistic wasn't exactly Dean's strong suit but he figured he could hope that one thing would go well out of their little adventure. Well, hooking back up with Sam had worked out but maybe they could get lucky twice in a row.

Fortunately packing was once again made easy by the fact that neither Dean, Cas, nor Claire had any luggage whatsoever. Moments after the three of them had climbed into the car Sam joined them, packing his small duffle bag into the empty trunk before sliding into the passenger's seat. Cas had left it open for him despite Dean's protests that the two kids should be the ones sitting in the back so now the two Novaks had the back seat to themselves with the Winchesters filling the front.

Sam looked a looked a little uncomfortable at first but by the time Dean had pulled away from the curb he already seemed to be slipping back into his old patterns. He and Dean had spent more than enough time in the Impala back when they were younger driving back and forth to school and baseball practices that Dean wasn't surprised to see the quick turn-around. It was kind of nice to have Sammy back in his old seat again, even if the sasquatch had almost outgrown it.

"You still listen to these?"

Dean glanced over at Sammy as he steered them back towards the highway. His brother had Dean's box of tapes in his lap and was thumbing through them with some odd mixture of a smirk and a grimace on his face. "Yeah. What's wrong with them?"

Sam raised his brows like it was obvious. "Well, they're _cassette tapes_ for starters. And second of all none of these bands have put out songs since the eighties."

Scowling back at his brother, Dean reached out with one hand, picked up the box, and put it back down where it was supposed to go. "There's nothing wrong with the classics, Sammy. Besides, you know the rule."

"What rule?"

"Driver picks the music, shotgun shuts his cakehole."

From behind him, Claire perked up. "You didn't tell us that rule!"

Dean looked back at her in the rearview mirror, his eyes meeting Castiel's as well, "That's because your dad never complained. Some people know what good music is, right Cas?"

"Your musical preferences are tolerable, Dean."

Sam laughed as Dean made a face like he had just been slapped. "Tolerable? Man, I'm surrounded by heathens…"

Claire smiled back at Dean, making a small grin spread across his own lips, "I like your music!"

"And that's why you're my favorite, Claire."

Her smile widened and Sam, for whatever reason, let out a small chuckle in the passenger's seat. The one good thing about Sammy's complaining though was that it worked to get the conversation started. For the sake of pure revenge Dean popped in one of his cassettes but conversation continued to flow, bouncing from what should be considered good music to the benefits of reading to the beauty of classic cars. For the most part it was just Dean and Sam arguing but every once in a while Claire would start them off on a new tangent. Castiel remained true to himself and stayed pretty much silent except for those few moments where Dean would address him directly.

Before he knew it Dean had already driven five hours, the time only brought to his attention when Claire broke through his and Sammy's "discussion" about the difference in gas mileage between an Impala and a Prius. "Dean, I'm hungry."

"What?" Hadn't they just eaten? Dean knew that kids had fast metabolisms but, come on, they were on a time schedule and it was only…Oh. A quick glance down at the clock showed that it was already eleven in the morning, which was actually a pretty decent time to eat lunch. It was then that Dean realized just how far they had already travelled. No matter how annoying Sam could be, he certainly could fill that awkward silence. "Alright, we're due for a short rest stop anyway. Sammy, keep your eyes open for somewhere we can stop for food."

Sam brushed his ridiculous hair out of his eyes as he studied a passing road sign. "There's a town coming up in three miles; they probably have some sort of restaurant."

Sam was right. A few minutes later they were passing through a small town, though it was really less of a town and more of a congregation of a handful of houses. True to his prediction though there was a place to eat among them. The establishment was clearly meant for truckers but Dean wasn't deterred; having run his own bar for so many years, he knew that grungy exteriors didn't immediately mean bad service. The key was to look for how many customers were parked out front and judging by the fine collection of semis parked out in front, this place wasn't too bad. It also seemed to be the only place to get a decent meal for miles, so that probably helped its popularity.

Pulling off of the highway, Dean looped his way back to the trucker stop. With all the big rigs parked in the front he had to park the Impala around the block but he didn't think anyone would really complain. The walk would do them all some good and give them a chance to stretch their legs for a bit.

As Dean turned the ignition off, Cas and Claire piled out of the back. Sam was about to follow their lead before he noticed that Dean was digging through the pockets of his old leather jacket. "What are you looking for?"

"Uh, nothing." Dean continued to rifle through the contents of his pocket before pulling out a small stack of credit cards. None of which were legally useable. He just needed to figure out which one he hadn't used in the last couple of days and they'd be good to go.

"Dean!"

Glancing over at his brother, Dean rolled his eyes as Sam sent him a Grade A bitch face. "What?"

"Are you using credit card fraud to pay for things?"

"What? No, don't be stupid." He totally was.

"You totally are! Your real name isn't on any of those. I knew you had to be low on funds, but you ran out of money days ago, didn't you? Is this how you've been paying for things?"

Letting out a sigh, Dean leaned his head back and shoved the credit cards pack into his pocket. "It worked, didn't it?"

That answer still didn't seem to satisfy Sam who apparently had too many morals for his own good. "Still! You could go to jail for that."

"Not if no one finds out." Dean turned to grin at his brother. "You gonna squeal on me, Sammy?"

Sam pursed his lips. "No, but, but that's not exactly the point."

"Sure it is; you don't get in trouble if you don't get caught. Now get out of the car so I can lock her up. Cas and Claire are waiting for us." Sam huffed but swung the passenger door open. "By the way, if you don't want me using one of my credit cards, you better come through on the promise you made last night and pay the bill for this meal."

Dean's grin returned as he heard his brother let out another sigh. "I figured. Just don't order the most expensive thing on the menu, alright?"

"Can't promise anything, Sammy. Now get moving." Castiel and Claire were already half-way to the entrance of the restaurant and Dean didn't want them to have to walk in there by themselves. Even if the people inside didn't immediately peg them as angels, Cas by himself was just weird enough to attract a few stares and Dean wanted this lunch to go down as smoothly as possible.

As it turned out, Cas didn't seem in a hurry to go anywhere without them either. The two angels had slowed once they realized Dean and Sam were going to be a few minutes, waiting long enough for the brothers to catch up before turning around the corner and heading towards the front of the diner.

Dean was happy to note that his initial impression of the place had been more or less on par with reality. Even though it was more of a dive than a diner, the small restaurant was clearly a trucker favorite. There were a few families mixed in with the truckers though, so Dean didn't feel too worried about herding Claire inside and over to a table. The décor left a lot to be desired but the wait staff was friendly enough and the food was made about twice as good as it had any right being simply due to the massively large portions they were serving. Dean's burger was enormous as was Castiel's sandwich and Sam's stupid salad; hell, even Claire's lunch was big and she had ordered off the kiddie menu. Dean made a mental note of this place, just in case he ever drove through this part of the state again. With the amount of food they gave out he wasn't going to be hungry for days.

As happy as that much food made him, Dean was happier still to see that Cas had finally seemed to accept that Sam didn't pose a threat. It must've happened gradually over the last twenty hours or so because Dean hadn't noticed it happening and yet just by looking at Castiel he looked much more at ease, similar to how he appeared the night they'd spent in Reno. Dean watched from across the table as the corners of the angel's lips quirked up at something his daughter said, Cas's blue eyes glowing softly as Sam laughed. No one would really be able to tell Castiel was anything but a socially awkward human unless they looked at his eyes. They really were ridiculously blue, his gaze sharp and piercing when it focused on you, like you and whatever stupid words tumbled out of your mouth were something vital to his survival.

"Dean!"

Dean jerked his head up as Claire called his name. It didn't look like he had missed much during his daydreaming, thank God, but he was going to have to be careful about letting his mind wander. It led him places he wasn't sure he was ready to go.

Across the table Claire was gazing up at him excitedly, Cas and Sam both watching on with varying degrees of amusement. "What's up, Claire?"

"Look, Dean," Claire pointed towards the front of the restaurant where there was a large glass display case, "they have pie here! Are you gonna get some? And if you get some, can I please have some?"

A grin spread across Dean's own face. He knew there was a reason he liked this little girl so much. "You're a lady after my own heart. What do you say you and me go check it out, huh?" As Claire nodded and clamored out of her chair, Dean nodded back towards Cas and Sam, "You two watch the table, we'll be right back."

Sam watched as Dean ran off with Claire, leaving him and Castiel alone. This was definitely the first time he had had to interact with the angel without Dean there acting as a buffer and Sam had to say it was a little unnerving. Sure, in the last twenty four hours he had been convinced that Cas wasn't going to try and smite him or anything but things definitely seemed a little…strained between them and Sam wasn't quite sure how to fix it.

Fiddling with his paper napkin, Sam snuck a peek at Castiel only to find the angel staring impassively at Dean and Claire across the room. Sam just didn't get how Dean was able to have such easy conversation with the guy; it was like talking to a brick wall! He just couldn't read the guy and the last thing he wanted to do was say something that would make Cas like him even less.

Finally Sam decided that waiting longer would only drag out the uncomfortable quiet. Clearing his throat, he opened his mouth to speak only to be cut off by Castiel. "You seemed surprised to see your brother."

For half a second Sam wasn't sure if he had imagined the statement or not but when Cas turned his eyes away from Dean and Claire to face him Sam stumbled for a response. "Well, yeah. It's been like five years and it's not like I expected him to come all the way out here to come after me."

The angel tilted his head just slightly to the side. "Why not? He seems the sort of man to do whatever is necessary to complete a task."

Sam had to smile at that, "Yeah, I guess he does seem like that. But, it's complicated. And Dean isn't exactly the visiting type."

"What do you mean?"

Shrugging, Sam tried to figure out how to explain what he meant. Even though he hadn't seen his older brother in almost five years, Sam still liked to think that he was the person who knew Dean the best. They had pretty much grown up attached at the hip thanks to their Dad's issues, so he knew Dean inside and out. That didn't mean he knew how to verbalize the complicated jumble that was Dean to anyone else though. "He…never really left town much when we lived together back in Lawrence. It wasn't that he didn't want to or he was afraid to; I remember as kids he used to plaster our room with road maps and random pictures of cities around the United States. I think he was planning on taking a trip but, with everything that was going on, it just never happened. In fact, I'm pretty sure this is the first time he's been west of the Rocky Mountains in his entire life."

Castiel blinked then looked back at Dean. "He hides it well." The angel's face was still emotionless but Sam had to take a mental step back at the soft look Cas's eyes suddenly took on.

Certain questions started to form in Sam's mind and he filed them away for later. "I don't think it bothers him. He'd probably go anywhere as long as a road took him there. I guess I just never expected him to find enough of a reason to let himself go."

"It seems as if you turned out to be reason enough."

Sam gave Castiel a thoughtful look. "Yeah, maybe." Maybe he was enough to lure Dean away from Lawrence. But if that had been the case Dean could've dropped by four years ago. Sam was pretty sure that there had to be another catalyst to Dean's sudden trip out west and Sam was pretty sure that he was looking at him right now.

When Dean came back to the table with Claire, a large plate of pie in both of their hands, he was surprised to see Sam and Cas actually talking to one another. He didn't catch what about but Dean was happy for it either way. With all the other shit they had to deal with, he didn't want any angel-demon awkwardness going amongst each other.

With the mood at the table lightened he and Claire began to work through their pie. Sam was watching him eat with a sort of sickened fascination and Cas seemed to be back to staring, this time out the window. Suddenly, when Dean was only two bites away from finishing, Castiel pushed out his chair and rose to his feet.

Startled by the sudden movement, Dean looked up at him to see the angel's eyes still focused on the window. "Someone light your seat on fire, Cas?"

The angel didn't even spare him a confused glance, just began walking straight towards the front door of the restaurant. "I will return shortly."

"Cas? Hey, wait a second! Damn it…" Turning back to the table, Dean shoveled the rest of the pie into his mouth and set his fork down. He didn't know what was up with Cas but he was going to find out before the angel caused a scene. Even Claire looked concerned, the girl watching her father leave with a tight frown on her face. Throwing his napkin on the table, Dean pointed at his brother, "Sammy, take care of the check, alright? I'm gonna go see what's up with Cas." When Dean saw Claire make to stand up, he shook his head, "Claire, you go ahead and stay here with Sam and finish up your pie. I'll be right back."

Knowing that Sam would take care of things inside, Dean quickly followed Castiel. The rouge angel hadn't gone far at least and was standing only a few steps outside the front door. He seemed totally oblivious to the warm wind ruffling his already mussed hair and was instead staring intently at something across the street. Even so, he seemed to sense Dean coming, speaking to him without even looking back. "Dean. We have a problem."

"What is it?"

"It seems they've found us."

There went the good feelings from getting to eat pie. Dean blinked then scanned the street in front of them, the sudden tension in Castiel's shoulders causing little shots of nervous adrenaline spiking through his veins. "Who found us? You'll need to be a little more specific."

"Demons."

Shit. Not what Dean wanted to hear at all. Hearing the door to the restaurant open and close again, Dean glanced back over his shoulder to see Sam and Claire step out, Sam immediately noticing Dean's concerned expression. "What's wrong?"

"We've got company."

Sammy's eyes widened then narrowed as he did a quick visual sweep of his own. "Where?"

Cas was the one to respond, "Across the street, standing near that boarded up storefront."

As Dean and Sam both snuck a glance over to where Castiel had indicated, the angel urged his daughter closer, looping an arm around her shoulders to keep her close. Spotting a small group of young adults loitering on the other side of the road, Dean tried his best to look nonchalant about the whole thing. They looked like normal humans to him but he figured he's just trust Cas on this one. "Do you think they've spotted us?"

"Almost certainly. They probably found us sometime during our meal and have been waiting for us to emerge from the building." The thought that demons had been watching them eat sent an icy shiver down Dean's spine.

Sam pretended to look down at his watch as if to check the time, "We might be able to make it back to the Impala before they catch us."

"It is possible." Cas's unspoken words weighed heavily in the air. It was possible, but not likely. Sam seemed to agree if his deepening frown was anything to go by.

Claire hugged closer to Castiel as Dean scowled down at his shoes, "Well we can't just wait here for them to jump us. We might as well try and get to the Impala."

For a long moment no one spoke, the pressing silence broken as Cas pulled Claire closer yet. Dean heard the air rustle behind the angel and wondered if he was struggling to keep his wings in. "Let's hurry then."

Dean nodded and took the lead. Keeping any signs of panic off of his face, he turned and began to walk around the corner as fast as he could without having it look like he was frightened. Castiel followed with Claire in tow and Sammy took up the rear. There was a sliver of a chance the demons didn't know that they had been spotted and right now that was their only real advantage.

As he walked Dean tried to think of ways that that he could possibly fight the demons off. He knew the lore; that they were repelled by holy water, that they didn't do too well with iron, but hell if he had any of that stuff on him. Holy water wasn't just something you could go to the corner store and buy, you had to know people. And Dean didn't.

"Dean," Dean tilted his head back to show that he was listening as Cas whispered to him, "They're coming around the other side."

Damn it. The demons were trying to cut them off before they got to the car. Dean felt like some sort of gazelle being stalked down by a freaking pride of lions, like he was prey being hunted down. The worst part of it was that was closer to the truth than he wanted to recognize.

"Dean…"

Another hushed warning from Cas. They had to be getting closer. Dean had started to power walk, only half a stride short of running. The Impala was just around the next corner. If they could only—

"Dean, look out!"

"Son of a bitch!" Dean lurched back, dodging by a hair as man rushed around the corner at inhuman speeds and tried to body slam him into the pavement. Stumbling, he just had time to regain his balance when the man—demon, had appeared again, his inky black eyes and smug grin inches from Dean's face.

"_Dean!_"

Sam's shout echoed in Dean's ears as he jumped to his left to try and evade whatever the demon's next move was, knowing all along that no matter what he did the Hell spawn was still going to be able to get one step ahead of him because of its speed. It would reach out and rip its hand straight into Dean's gut, just like they did with Ellen and Jo.

But he had one thing Ellen and Jo hadn't – an angel on his shoulder. As soon as the demon reached for him, Dean felt Castiel at his back. Cas's hand stretched around him and he pressed his palm to the demon's forehead and then a bright white light burst from the creature's eyes and mouth, its body falling limp to the ground a heartbeat later.

Dean barely had time to register that the demon had just been killed before Cas pushed him out of the way. Whatever tax accountant vibe Castiel had going on before had vanished as he faced the remaining two demons head-on with a look of pure holy vengeance in his eyes.

The two demons hesitated, having seen how easily their buddy went down, but then darted forward, intent on getting their job done. They split up as they drew closer, trying to run around either side of Castiel undoubtedly in order to get to Claire. Claire who was now huddled behind Dean, her fingers gripping at the back of his leather jacket. Even knowing what these demons were capable of, they were going to have to go through him before they so much as touched a hair on that little girl's head.

Castiel caught the demon who had tried to slip by on his right but it was putting up a fight and the drained angel just didn't have the power to stop the second from sneaking through. Crouching down, Dean readied himself for impact but again the blow he had been expecting never came.

Dean blinked, unsure at what had just happened as he stared at the demon who seemed to have been frozen mid-step. Cas had just managed to smite the demon he had grappled with and they watched in surprise together as the last demon grabbed its throat and fell to its knees, it's pitch black eyes glaring at, at Sam?

Spinning around, Dean's mouth fell open as he saw Sammy, his eyes as black as the demon's with one arm outstretched and his fingers splayed out like he was reaching for something that wasn't there. Then he began to close his fingers into a fist and behind Dean the demon's choking grew louder. _Sam_ was doing this? But, how could he even…?

Sam's body began to tremble with exertion, his brow heavily creased, as he seemed to focus entirely on the demon about twelve feet away. Dean couldn't tell whether it was in pain or was choking but he pushed Claire back as thick black smoke suddenly bubbled up from the thing's throat and spewed out onto the sidewalk, the smoke scorching the concrete as it was seemingly pulled through. Then, with a quick turn of Sammy's wrist it was over and the demon's body fell limp, dead as a doornail before it even hit the pavement.

Dean's eyes flashed up from the demon's corpse over to his little brother. He was panting like he had just run a mile but there was a small, smug smile on his face. That expression immediately dropped as Dean's voice filled the void that had been left in the wake of the sudden attack. "What the hell was that, Sam?"

As if remembering that he wasn't alone, Sammy's gaze flew from Dean, to the demon, to Cas, and finally back to Dean as he seemed to struggle to find the right words. "Uh…It's, um…"

Castiel, who hadn't taken his eyes off of Sam since the start, saved his brother the trouble of explaining. "It was an exorcism of sorts. I have never seen anything quite like it. To be able to expel a demon with only your mind…You are very skilled, Sam."

Raising his brow, Dean pointed down at the demon now sprawled in the burnt-out circle where its soul had apparently been dragged back down to Hell. "_That_ is a good thing? How is it good that Sam," his baby brother, "can do _that_ with his _brain_?" He had always known that Sammy was different, had always had some sort of psychic thing thanks to dear old Gramps but, come on. This…First the demon blood, and now this?

Castiel finally looked back at him as Sam seemed to sink into himself a bit. Dean would've felt guilty if he hadn't been so damned worried. "This is a good thing, Dean. Your brother clearly has a strength not possessed by most half-demons along with the ability to control it."

"I" Sam spoke up hesitantly, as if afraid to regain Dean's attention, "I learned about it from, well, from Ruby."

Dean grimaced, "You mean when you were high on demon blood?"

Cas blinked then spared a quick glance down at Claire who was still half-hidden behind Dean. Right. The angel hadn't known that before and Dean might've chosen a better time to announce that Sam used to be a junkie than in front of a seven year old little girl but whatever. He couldn't take it back and wasn't even sure he wanted to.

"I wasn't always—!" Sighing, Sam shook his head and tried again, "Sometimes. Look, she taught me how to do it, because we were hanging out with other demons that she didn't always trust and she wanted me to be able to defend myself. The demon blood, it actually gave me the strength to learn how to do it and even now when I'm sober, it's harder but I still can do it. Besides, I just saved your life, Dean! If nothing else, no matter how I learned it, that in itself made it worth the trouble."

About to argue back, Dean was stopped as Castiel stepped forward and put a hand on his shoulder, as if physically holding him back from the verbal onslaught he was about to unleash about how Sammy shouldn't have to put himself at risk to do _anything_ for Dean. "Dean, without Sam's help I have little doubt that you would indeed have been seriously injured or killed so I for one am grateful for his actions. Moreover, it is entirely possible that we may find ourselves facing a demon attack again before we reach our destination so knowing that Sam has this ability could be crucial to our survival."

Seeing that Dean was begrudgingly backing down, the angel's hand slid off of his shoulder. "In any case, I feel it would be best if we continued this conversation in the car. Once those three demons have been discovered, even more will be hunting us down."

Cas's words brought Dean back to the present situation and, after giving Sammy a look to say that they would be talking later, began to walk towards the Impala. "Fine. But we only have an hour left until we get to L.A. By the time those bastards pick up our scent again, we'll be kicking back poolside with an archangel."

Castiel blinked then with a small, wistful smile gathered Claire up close to him. "If only it were so easy."


	4. Chapter 4

Agh! This took _so _long! All I can say is I'm sorry. A job puts a surprising limit on writing time. If any of you checked out my Livejournal recently you'll have noticed that I put up a sneak preview of this chapter as a result of my guilt. If you're curious, I'd advise that you continue to glance occasionally at my journal as I anticipate more guilt—and thus more sneak previews—in the future. At some point, perhaps even after the story ends, I might post a few deleted scenes there as well.

I can't say thank you enough to supreme dramon, keiko-uchiha, egyptian1995, Pilali, ChaosGarden, and ramen-is-my-goddess for reviewing for Chapter 3! Thank you for putting up with me! ^^;

O

* * *

><p>Chapter 4<p>

* * *

><p>Dean waited all of thirty minutes before bringing their problems up again. For half an hour he had tried to force everything to the back of his mind; the danger Claire was in, their short deadline, their recent demonic attack, Sammy's super-physic powers, everything, he tried to drown it all out with the simple joy of watching the road fly by underneath his tires. But with Sam sitting sullenly in the passenger seat and Cas softly soothing Claire in the back Dean could only block it out for so long. He wanted to wait on Sam's lecture until there was less of an audience but in the meantime, something else had been especially bothering him. "So Cas, back at the diner you said that this wasn't going to be all that easy. Care to elaborate?"<p>

Castiel looked up from where he had been tending to Claire. "By the statement you made previous to my own I believed that you thought reaching Gabriel would be easy."

"So you're saying it won't be?"

"Probably not."

Dean sighed. Was he surprised? No, not with the way their trip had been going so far. But he had been sort of hoping that fighting a small squad of demons was going to be their biggest trouble spot. After shooting Sam an exasperated look, Dean glanced back up into the rearview mirror, "How long do you think it'll take to find him?"

"I can't be certain. It depends on where Gabriel is."

"What?"

Now it was Cas's turn to sigh. "Usually archangels have their base of operations in a high income, high production area of a city, such as the penthouse office of a skyscraper in a wealthy commercial district."

That didn't seem too difficult. "So we'll start in the financial district. Every city should have one."

Sam spoke up from Dean's right, pulling his smart phone out of his jeans pocket. "I can look it up online if you want so we know roughly where to go when we get there."

Before Dean could even give him the go-ahead Cas was shaking his head. "That is where our problems begin. What I just explained to you is what a typical archangel would do. Gabriel however is…unique. I'm not sure where he will have set himself up."

Dean scowled, "Great. Well, let's just check the financial district first in case old Gabe there decided to think inside the box. Now you just said that's the beginning of our problems; what else are we going to have to worry about?"

Castiel's gaze drifted towards the front windshield, staring out as the mountains of the Grapevine began to give way to the San Fernando Valley. They'd be in Los Angeles within half an hour and Dean wanted a game plan by then. "Angels naturally tend to travel alone or with only one or two other angels from their garrison."

"Their 'garrison'?"

Cas gave a small shrug as he explained, "Yes. It's a similar concept to your classmates. Archangels on the other hand usually travel with a large retinue since they typically operate hubs of power. Among all the archangels Gabriel keeps the fewest angels around him but we will certainly encounter them before we are able to reach him."

It seemed liked there was finally a benefit for going after the "special" archangel. "And this is going to be a problem?"

Pausing a moment, Castiel seemed to seriously consider the question before answering. "It depends on which angel we encounter. I know of a few who inhabit the city who should be willing to help us."

"And the rest of them?"

"We should try to keep a low profile."

"Great." Not good. Definitely not good. "Let's worry about that second part later and just focus right now on finding this guy. Sam, go ahead and pull up a map of the area since it sounds like searching the financial district is still our best lead."

Sam pulled a concerned face as he began to type keywords into his phone's search engine, "I don't know, Dean, Los Angeles is huge. It's going to take forever to go through even a single neighborhood."

Dean scoffed but inwardly hoped that Sam was exaggerating. Dean had watched enough movies and TV shows to get a feeling for how enormous L.A. was but he had a feeling he was still going to be overwhelmed like the dumbass country bumpkin he was. Didn't mean he couldn't hide it though. "I know it's big, but what else do we have to go on? With Cas's mojo cut off it's not like we really have any other options. I doubt you can just look in the yellow pages under 'angel' and find Gabriel's name listed."

In the backseat, Castiel tilted his head to the side but seemed to catch Dean's meaning relatively quickly this time. "That is correct. Gabriel's name will not be listed in the phonebook. No one in the area will even know he's an angel, aside from the other angels of course, making our search more difficult. If I had the full use of my powers I could find him in an instant but since they are not currently at my disposal, as you pointed out, I was hoping on using an alternate method to pinpoint Gabriel's exact location once we get close enough."

Oh good. At least this wasn't going to be a total crapshoot. "Yeah? What's that?"

"Sam."

Dean blinked and looked over to see Sammy looking equally surprised. Cas was now looking at the younger Winchester, his gaze appraising as he continued to speak. "My initial plan was to walk the streets until I heard rumors or felt instinctually drawn towards his location but now having met you, Sam, I was hoping that you could assist me."

A small something stung in Dean's chest but he kept his mouth shut as Sammy floundered for an answer. "Uh, yeah, sure. I'll do whatever I can to help."

"After seeing how you reacted to me when we first met, there is little doubt that your reaction to an archangel would be even more extreme. Given the extent of their power you should be able to feel its effects from some distance and we should be able to follow it back to its source."

"Wait," Dean looked back at Sam then up at Cas in the rearview mirror, "You want to use Sammy as a human Geiger counter?"

The angel's eyes settled back onto Dean's in the mirror and it took Dean a full second to force his own back to the road before he crashed the car. "Your metaphors seem to get stranger each day, Dean, but yes. That is essentially what I am asking."

Yet another glance in the rearview mirror showed that there was absolutely no trace of sarcasm or humor on Castiel's face, his expression calm and serious. Dean wanted to say something, to say _anything_ that would help Cas understand just how much that idea sucked, but then Sam was nodding in agreement. "If you think it'll work, I'll do it."

"_Sam._"

"_Dean._" Dean didn't have to look over to know that Sammy was giving him another bitch face. He was going to have to be careful or else his face was going to stick like that. "I understand what I'm signing up for and I'm still doing it. I can live with a little bit of a headache if it'll help us find Gabriel faster."

Scrounging for a rebuttal, it didn't take Dean too long to realize that the only person who thought this was a stupid plan was him. With Sam and Cas taking up a unified stance against him he was thoroughly outnumbered. Maybe Dean could bribe Claire to join him but until she was old enough to really understand what they were arguing about the victory would seem a little hollow. Especially since Sam and Cas would probably still get their way in the end.

Dean didn't consider himself the brightest crayon in the box but even he knew a lost cause when he saw one. Letting out a stifled growl, he turned his attention back toward the road, "I still think it's a stupid idea…"

"Noted." At least Sam had the good graces to keep any smug grins to himself as he looked back down at his phone. "Now can we please just work on getting there? According to this map we're about twenty minutes away and you're going to have to merge onto a different highway pretty soon so keep your eyes open for off-ramps."

Sam's driving directions gave them something new to bicker about as they finished making their way into the city of Los Angeles. The urban sprawl had begun miles away, along with a picturesque, thin layer of smog, confusing Dean for a few minutes. San Fernando, Burbank, Glendale, the cities blended together in a seemingly endless sea of humanity and concrete. Traffic had begun to worsen as well and Dean almost missed his exit, too distracted as an SUV nearly sideswiped the Impala.

Tense from the ride, Dean started as Claire spoke up from the backseat, the little girl's face pressed up against the side window. "Are we close?"

Sam was the first to respond, "Yeah, I think we're getting closer."

Hearing an oddly strained edge to his brother's voice, Dean looked over and saw that Sam had his head leaning back against the headrest, his hand holding his forehead as he closed his eyes. He knew this was a stupid idea.

"You okay?"

Sam furrowed his brow before nodding. "Yeah…Yeah I'm okay. It's only a little uncomfortable, sort of like a queasy feeling."

"Don't you dare vomit in my baby, Sam."

"I'm not going to throw up, Dean—"

Castiel cut Sam off with a pleased hum, "Sam is already reacting to the presence of an archangel. He's correct; we must be getting close if Sam is already sensing Gabriel."

"Let me get this straight, Cas." Satisfied that his brother wasn't going to hurl all over the Impala's interior, Dean refocused on the angel in his backseat, "Sam's already about to lose his lunch and we just got into Los Angeles's city limits. Does that mean that all demons are affected like this?" Was Gabriel really so strong that he could create a demon-free zone in one of the most populated cities in the United States simply by being there?

Castiel seemed to understand what Dean was trying to ask, "Yes. Demons dare not tread where archangels walk the Earth. Los Angeles is one of the few cities in this nation where full demons will not be found. Although they did not realize it, the humans who gave the city its name were more accurate than they could have ever imagined."

"But isn't L.A. a pretty dangerous place?" It sure seemed like it on all of those crime dramas that were set here.

"Do not make the mistake of thinking that all the world's ills originate from demons. In this case, most of the violence of this city comes solely from human beings themselves."

Sam blinked his eyes open and considered Cas's words for a long moment. "That's…actually kind of depressing."

"I suppose it is."

That uplifting thought carried them through the next twenty minutes, the quiet in the car only interrupted by Dean sliding a Led Zeppelin tape in. The music, it turned out, was a good choice because it drowned out the curses Dean muttered under his breath as he turned off of the freeway and drove them into downtown L.A.

Five minutes after that they were where they wanted to be and Dean had come to the conclusion that L.A. sucked. Fighting those demons had been easier than trying just to find a damn parking spot big enough for the Impala in downtown L.A. As Dean drove in, he literally saw fewer than three open parking spots, all of which would've cost an arm and a leg to park in and were too small anyway. Not to mention all the traffic and the other drivers. Was everyone in L.A. blind? What kind of dumbass merged into an occupied lane?

Finally Sam was able to direct them to a parking garage a few blocks away from their main search area. Irritable from driving, Dean was even willing to pay the twenty bucks it was going to cost to park there as long as it meant they could start getting shit done.

Claire and Cas both seemed to be smart enough not to bother him as all four of them tromped back down to the street level, Dean's hands shoved into his pockets as they emerged onto the sidewalk. "Okay. According to Sam's research, this is about where all the big-wigs do their business." The buildings were freaking huge and there were so many people. They were all walking around in suits and skirts, making Dean feel a bit like a homeless drifter…which, technically was actually fairly accurate now. Damn it.

Castiel reached out for Claire's hand, the angel keeping his daughter close to his side as they began to walk back to the right neighborhood. "Speaking of which, Sam, can you sense where Gabriel might be?"

Shaking his head, Sam frowned as he stared down at his phone, probably pulling up a map of the area. "It may have gotten a little stronger but not by much. I mean, I'm not really sure what I'm supposed to be feeling but I don't think this is it."

"You'll know for certain when we get close enough." Looking away from Sam, Cas turned his eyes up towards the skyscrapers around them. "It may take us a while to locate Gabriel even with Sam's powers though. He could be anywhere."

A sigh rushed past Dean's lips before he could stop it. He had been worried about Sam using his abilities but know he was the only lead they had. If they had to check every single building—or worse, every single floor of every single building—they were going to be here for weeks. "How about we split up. Sammy and me'll go to the right and you, Cas, and Claire can head off to the left. Let's meet back up in two hours and by then hopefully one of us will've found something."

OoOoOo

Two hours later, none of them had found anything. Four hours passed by, and still nothing. By the time the sixth hour passed by, then their seventh and eighth, Dean was more than ready to throw in the towel.

Dropping down onto a grimy bench, Dean leaned his head back with a groan as Sam took a seat beside him. "We've been looking all day and we haven't found bupkis."

His brother released a long-suffering sigh that Dean felt wasn't entirely necessary. Though he had been complaining about the same thing for about the last three hours now. "I know, Dean. Look, here comes Cas. Maybe we can come up with a new plan."

Grudgingly lifting his head back up, Dean looked down the street Sam had indicated and spotted Castiel and Claire walking towards them. The fading sunlight was casting long shadows across the city from the surrounding skyscrapers so it was a little hard to make out their expressions but even from this distance Dean could tell that Claire at least was tiring. The little girl was lagging slightly behind her father, one hand still clasped in his while she rubbed at her eyes with her other. It was definitely time to turn in for the night.

Running a hand down his face, Dean waited until the two angels had crossed the street to where he and Sam were sitting before speaking. "Listen, Cas, we've been wandering the streets of L.A. for almost half a day now. We've searched this God damned district top to bottom and we haven't found anything. I think it's time to call it a night."

Cas's shoulders sagged underneath his trench coat and Dean almost wanted to take back his words. Castiel had been so confident all day that Gabriel was here, that they were within a block of the answer to his and Claire's problems, and telling him to give up the search felt a little like kicking a puppy. But at the same time, Dean knew Cas knew he was right by the resigned look flickering across his face. "Perhaps if you and Sam were to take Claire and go find somewhere to stay for the night, I could continue."

"No, Cas, I'm not going to let you walk around here by yourself." Dean was half sure that he had already seen three drug deals going down on one of the alleyways he and Sam had peeked into and the last thing that he wanted to think about was Cas wandering into the wrong neighborhood after the sun set.

Castiel, however, looked relatively unimpressed by Dean's refusal. "If you are worried for my safety, you do not need to be concerned. I _am_ an angel."

"You're an angel whose batteries have been drained and I don't want to take any chances."

Seeing that Cas still wasn't convinced, Dean looked back at Sam for support. When he felt Dean's eyes on him, Sammy leaned forward, his voice softened into that sympathetic tone he worked so well. "He's right, Cas. I know you're probably feeling pretty frustrated right now but if we haven't found anything around here yet, I don't know if you spending more time searching is going to help. We could all use a good night's sleep though and then in the morning we can start looking for Gabriel in a new part of the city."

Dean could tell they were getting through to him as Castiel's face pulled up into a discouraged frown. "That's just it though, I don't know where else to look."

Pushing himself to his feet, Dean stretched his arms over his head, wincing as he felt a couple joints in his back pop. "Maybe something will come to you in your sleep."

Castiel looked unconvinced but between Dean, Claire, and Sam they managed to guide him back to the parking garage, into the Impala, then down a couple of blocks where Dean had noticed a cheap chain inn advertising their rooms. By the time Dean was re-parking the Impala, Claire was about two seconds from falling asleep in the backseat. Castiel on the other hand seemed to be nearly vibrating with a nervous energy that after only a moment Dean was able to identify as fear.

Nodding for Sammy to go ahead into the lobby and get them a room, Dean pulled the angel aside while Claire tottered inside, blindly following Sam's giant footsteps. Before Castiel could even find the words to ask why they weren't going in themselves, Dean very intentionally stepped into the angel's space, ensuring both continuous eye contact and a chance to talk in private. "Cas, hey, come on. You have to keep it together."

Something inside the angel seemed to crumble a bit at Dean's words. It was clear he'd been trying to hide how much he was freaking out right now. Maybe Claire was too tired to notice or too young to know better, but he'd have to do better than that if he wanted to fool Dean. "I know. I'm trying, Dean. It's just—Gabriel is my only hope at saving my daughter. You cannot understand the amount of danger she is in, and she is growing stronger every day, making it more likely that they'll find her."

"Who, the demons? You said it yourself, no full demon can handle being here so we're safe for now."

"Demons are not what I am afraid of. It's the other angels. Dean, they will have received the order to _kill_ Claire and in this state I will not be able to do anything to stop them. I _need_ to find Gabriel, now."

Castiel's voice had dropped what seemed like four octaves as he was speaking, a panicked haze covering his blue eyes. He couldn't blame the guy for it; Dean was freaked out plenty himself and it wasn't even his kid who was in danger. He could tell the angel was about ready to bolt and continue the search and he would've let him go if he didn't think Castiel needed to rest as much as they did. "Listen to me, Cas. Me and Sammy will do whatever it takes to see this through, alright? But right now we all just need a couple of hours to wind down and come up with a new plan."

"But Dean—"

Dean interrupted Castiel's protest, "Do you trust me?"

"What?"

"I asked if you trust me."

Cas blinked, clearly caught off guard and stuck from the quick change of emotions. "You have never given me any reason not to trust you, so yes, I suppose I do."

"Then trust me when I say that we're going to find Gabriel in time. Just not tonight. Tonight, you, me, Sammy, and Claire, all of us need to order room service, get a minimum of four hours of sleep, then rethink this with a fresh eye tomorrow morning. Okay?"

Releasing a short breath, Cas seemed to deflate a bit but he finally nodded. That panicked look hadn't faded from his eyes though and just seeing it made Dean's stomach clench up uncomfortably. Moving a hand to the angel's shoulder, Dean gave it a short squeeze. He wasn't good at this comforting thing. That was Sammy's area of expertise. "We'll make this work, Cas. I promise."

Somehow when he said it out loud Dean could almost believe it himself. Cas seemed to be thinking along the same lines as a halfhearted smile slipped onto Castiel's lips. He obviously didn't believe Dean this time but he looked like he appreciated the effort and that was enough for Dean right now. Just fighting back a hint of the shadows lingering on Cas's face made him feel like he had just moved a mountain. "Thank you, Dean."

"Don't mention it." Realizing that his hand was still on the angel's shoulder, Dean jerked it back then awkwardly shoved it into his jacket pocket. "Anyway, let's head inside. Sam should've gotten us a room by now."

Castiel nodded again and allowed Dean to lead the way. Once inside the hotel, Dean realized what a mistake it was to leave Sammy in charge of getting a room. Staring at the room now, Dean wasn't entirely sure Sam should ever be allowed to even choose a hotel again.

"Sam, I'm not okay with this."

Sam had the gall to roll his eyes as he threw his small duffle down onto one of the two double beds. Two beds. For four people. Meaning Dean was going to have to share. "This was the only room they had left, Dean. Apparently there's some sort of music festival going on and they're booked. We're lucky I was able to talk the manager into giving us this."

This was lucky? There wasn't even a couch or an armchair in this dump and unless he wanted to sleep outside in the Impala—which was certainly a viable option that had certainly worked before—he apparently was going to share with Sam. "Oh come on. How is it fair that the two biggest people have to share a bed and the two smallest people get the other?" No way were they going to fit.

Sam lifted a brow, his lips curving up in a small, teasing smirk. "What, you want to switch it up? I don't know if Cas would be okay with Claire sleeping with me while you and he shared a bed."

Why not? Honestly Cas hadn't known Sam for long, but he and Claire would fit on a bed with plenty of room to spare. Him and Cas would have to sleep a little closer, but it'd still be better than—Suddenly realizing the implications, Dean scowled at his brother who seemed amused that it had taken so long for him to get it, "_No_, I don't want to switch it up. It was an observation, that's all."

"Alright. Then stop complaining."

Dean did manage to stop himself from complaining about the sleeping arrangements for the rest of the night. Out loud anyway. After Sam footed the bill for some room service and turned in for the night, Dean was cursing a blue streak in his head. Sam, as it turned out, was not only very large and took up way more than his fair share of the mattress but it looked like he still tended to roll around in his sleep. It had been kind of cute when Sam had been seven but now it was just plain aggravating. Sam was like three feet taller now and with him swinging his giant limbs around there was no way that Dean wasn't going to get caught in the crossfire no matter how close he scooted to the edge. On top of that, he kept stealing the blankets which in Dean's book was a bed sharing sin. How Sam had managed to keep a girlfriend at all was a complete mystery.

Nevertheless, Dean withstood it and tried to force himself to fall asleep. He was tired, he had driven a lot and walked a lot today, he deserved some sleep damn it. But when a glance at the digital clock sitting on the side table told him that it was already two in the morning he decided that enough was enough.

Fuck this. He wanted to get some sleep tonight, even if it meant an awkward morning.

Sliding off of the mattress, Dean padded over to the other side of the room and, after only a moment of hesitation, slipped into the other bed behind Castiel. The angel and Claire were sleeping close enough together that it still gave Dean plenty of space and he knew for a fact that Castiel never tossed and turned in his sleep. Dean wasn't sure if it was because he was tired or because he already knew Cas so well but it was much less weird than he had thought it should be, lying this close to something inhuman. Either way, the mattress was comfortable, there were no flailing limbs, and he actually had some blankets over him. All of those things combined had Dean quickly drifting off to sleep, tussled black hair and pale skin the last thing he saw as he closed his eyes.

Dean woke up to a much less pleasant sensation. It felt like only a couple of minutes had passed before he felt someone prodding his arm. If he'd given it half a second of thought he would've been able to figure out who it was, but Dean felt good about just being able to open his eyes.

Glaring blearily at his harasser, Dean found himself staring into Claire's face, the girl inches away from him. Like father, like daughter. "Mn, Claire. You okay?"

Again, if Dean had bothered to let his brain kick back on he would've noticed that her expression was anything but frightened or worried. In fact, she looked about one word away from breaking out into a massive giggle fit. "Dean, if you wanted to hug my daddy you didn't have to sneak into bed. You could've just asked."

"What are you…?" Dean's voice trailed off as he followed Claire's gaze to where one of Dean's arms was draped almost protectively over Castiel's chest. Well damn. It looked like moving around in your sleep was a Winchester family trait. And it looked like Dean was a cuddler. Castiel was still asleep but what really confused Dean was that his grabby hands must've woken the angel up. In turn, Cas easily could've pushed him off but if anything it seemed like Cas had relaxed into the embrace rather than tried to wiggle out of it. And Dean's brain didn't quite know what to make of that.

Tugging his arm away, Dean rolled over with a grunt. Claire stepped back to give him some room as he swung around. "Just forget that you saw that. And what time is it?"

It felt like five in the morning. No way could it be any later than six—"It's seven thirty."

Shit. Running his hand through his hair in lieu of a comb, Dean let out a wide yawn before he realized something very important. Sam wasn't in the other bed. It was empty, in fact. "Hey Claire, do you know where Sammy is?"

"Nope."

"I thought you might say that."

A thousand difference scenarios were flashing through Dean's mind but he forced himself to stick with the most realistic explanation for why Sammy wasn't where he was supposed to be. They had been sharing a bed early last night so Dean was sure Sam could've gotten too far. He just hoped the truth didn't involve Sam finding any trouble to get into before the rest of them even woke up. "I'd better go look for him."

"Do you need help?"

"Huh? Oh, nah." Now awake enough to appreciate the offer, Dean grinned down at Claire. "You can save all your searching for later today. How about you get Cas up by the time I get back instead?"

Claire seemed more than happy to oblige as she nodded her head. Leaving the young Nephilim to her own devices, Dean pulled himself the rest of the way out of bed and made short work of his morning routine in the bathroom. That he was mostly already dressed made the whole process a lot faster, though a quick check confirmed that if he was going to sleep in the same clothes he wore during the day they were going to have to stop off at a Laundromat pretty soon.

Dean left Claire in charge of the room before making his way back towards the lobby, figuring it would probably be the best place to start looking for his brother. When he reached the main room it was completely empty save for a single receptionist behind the main desk. He got her attention with a wave, "Hey, have you seen a guy come through here this morning? He's about eight feet tall with Herbal Essence hair?"

The woman looked taken aback at first but something Dean said must've triggered a memory, "A young man came through here about thirty minutes ago asking where the nearest coffee shop was?"

"That's probably him. Thanks." Coffee did sound like Sam and was thankfully one of the most benign scenarios Dean had come up with. If Sammy left about half an hour ago than he was probably making his way back to the hotel now but Dean was too impatient to just sit in the lobby and wait. It was a good decision; Dean only had to take three steps outside to find his brother.

Sam was sitting on the hood of the Impala with a Styrofoam cup in his hands and a second waiting beside him. So either Sam was really hounding for some caffeine this morning or he knew Dean better than he thought.

Glancing around and finding the rest of the hotel's parking lot empty of any of its patrons, Dean strolled across the asphalt to where his brother was sitting. "What are you doing out here?"

Sam lifted his head and gave Dean a small smirk as he sat down next to his brother, the Impala creaking just slightly at the added weight. "I didn't want to wake anyone up. We had a late night, I figured everyone could do with a little extra sleep."

Having this talk outside was fine with Dean. He had wanted to get Sam alone for a while now in order to talk through some things he didn't necessarily want an audience for. Before he could bring up any of the serious stuff though, Sam's smirk quirked up into a full-blown grin, "You know, when I asked if you wanted to switch the sleeping arrangements up last night I was kind of joking. You and Cas looked really cute though."

Dean rolled his eyes. "Shut up. And gimme that." Snatching up the second cup of coffee, Dean downed about a third of it in one go. He was going to need some caffeine himself for what was coming next. Sam seemed to sense something was coming too as he shuffled around a bit, his arms coming in a little closer to his body as he took a hesitant sip of his own coffee. Swallowing, Dean figured he should just get this over with. "You know I want to talk to you about this whole you putting yourself on the line to find Gabriel thing."

Sam let out an exasperated little sigh, "Come on, Dean, do we have to go over this again?"

"Yes, actually, I think we do. I'm grateful for what you've done for us so far, but I don't want you risking yourself like this."

"I'm not a kid anymore. I'm old enough to make my own choices and this is what I'm choosing. Besides, you don't exactly have any right to tell me not to help out when you've already put so much on the line."

Frowning, Dean's fingers tightened a little on his cup. "What do you mean?"

"You gave up everything for Cas and Claire back when you barely even knew them! How is what I'm doing now worse or riskier than what you've already done?"

"Yeah, well, do what I say, not what I do. You can't keep putting yourself in danger, Sam. Using your powers to stop demons and find Gabriel, you're going to hurt yourself! I shouldn't've even asked you to come along." Dean knew that they were going to get into trouble. He knew that going into this but he still let Sam come. If anything happened, Dean wasn't sure he'd be able to forgive himself.

"You don't mean that. Besides, you would've had a hard time keeping me away. I needed to get out of that house." Dean looked over to find Sam staring down into his coffee cup. He could tell his brother wasn't finished so he stayed quiet for once and let Sammy work through it in his mind first.

"…I can still see her sometimes you know."

"Who?"

"Jess." Dean's frown softened as Sam continued, his own face drawing up into a pained smile, "I'm still living in the same apartment, sleeping in the same room she died in. It's been redone but sometimes I can swear I smell smoke. Other nights…other nights I lay awake at night imagining of her being burned alive above me. A few times I'll be walking around downstairs and I'll see her out of the corner of my eye, wearing the white dress she had on the last time I saw her alive."

Dean let out a breath, not knowing if Sam had been dreaming or was being metaphorical, but-"…Do you think you're actually seeing something or is it just in your head?" There _were_ such things as ghosts after all. Dean had never dealt with one personally but it seemed like being burned to death in a maliciously set fire was a pretty good set-up for someone becoming a sprit. Especially if they had left someone behind.

Sam just shook his head, "I don't know anymore. Either way it doesn't matter. More than wanting to help you, I just wanted to get away from there."

For a long moment Dean didn't respond, Sam's words washing over him. "…I think I know how you feel." That's how it was for him too, first when their Mom died and again when the Roadhouse burned down. Sometimes you just had to get away.

Another few minutes passed as they both just finished up their coffee, stuck in their own memories. Sam was the first to shake it off, offering Dean a more lively smile as he placed his empty cup down beside him, "Anyway…At least it seems like one of us is starting to move on."

"Huh?"

Again a grin flooded onto Sam's face and as much as Dean preferred the expression to Sam's sad face it didn't bode well for him personally. "You and Cas. I knew you liked the guy but I didn't know you'd gotten this attached already."

"Whatever, Sam. You know I've only dated girls, so don't give me that crap."

Sam was persistent as usual, "You've only _dated_ girls but—"

"—Sam, if you say one more word, I swear I'm gonna—"

Now the bastard looked like he was close to laughing"—You don't need to get so defensive, Dean! It's okay, I'm fine with it. I'm actually a little like that myself, so, don't worry about it. I'm just saying you seemed pretty cozy in there."

Dean scoffed and rolled his eyes again. He had experimented with the same sex a little as a teen, without revealing anything about it to his father, though apparently his little brother had noticed. But none of those relationships, if you could even call them that, had gone anywhere so he considered himself straight with a few bi flings in his past. But now with Cas…

Dean huffed and set his coffee down next to Sam's. "Cas…isn't really in my league." An angel and a human who stopped believing in God the day his family home burned to the ground with his mother inside it. That was never going to happen. "Besides, after today when we find Gabriel, we won't really have any reason to stick together anyway."

He could feel Sam's gaze on him but kept his own eyes set firmly on the pavement. His brother's tone had gone lower, softer, and any eye contact would just push it over the top. "You really do like the guy, huh? If you ever change your mind and realize what a great guy you actually are, just, be careful, alright? I know I'm the last person who should be saying this, especially after I just teased you, but you have to be careful, Dean. He's not, he's just not human. He doesn't work the same way you do."

Confused about Sam's sudden change in perspective, Dean could only jump to the angel's defense, "Hey, Cas is a great guy!"

"He is! I'm not arguing that. I'm just telling you the truth, Dean. I don't want to see you get hurt trying to…date cross-species. I've been there before and, it doesn't always work out."

So that's what this was about. "Not that I'm even interested," Dean really couldn't be, "but if I was, there's a huge difference between me going out with an angel and you going out with a demon. Now can you please just drop it!"

Sam put his hands up, "Fine. It was just advice, you can take it or leave it. Though just for the record, I would have no problem with you and Cas trying to make it work as long as you took it slow at first."

"_Sam!_"

"Alright, dropping it!"

If Sam didn't wipe that grin off of his face, Dean really was going to punch him. This morning had way too many ups and downs already and all he wanted to do was just find a freaking archangel so he could get back to his life. "You know what, Sammy? You go up and get Cas and Claire out of the room. I'm going to get the Impala started up."

"That takes like one second to do."

"And?"

Now it was Sam's turn to roll his eyes. "Fine, but by the time I get back you'd better have some idea about where we're going next."

"Sure, whatever."

Despite his blatant dismissal of the idea, after Sammy turned back into the hotel Dean actually did think about what their next move would be. It was obvious that Cas didn't have a clue where to look next but between the three of them hopefully they'd be able to figure something out before something bad happened to Claire.

Climbing into the Impala, Dean stuck in a new cassette tape and leaned back to wait for the rest of them to come out while his thoughts flew around his head. If he were an archangel where would he hole up? Cas said that Gabriel was different than the other archangels and obviously he hadn't been where he should've been so the angel's out-of-the-box choices included his living arrangements. The question was how was Gabriel different? There were a hundred different places in L.A. that Dean could think of where a being with almost limitless power would choose to hang out. There was the beach, the hills to give them that omnipresent feeling as they looked over the valley, somewhere on the outskirts of town closed off from the rest of human society.

With this huge range of possibilities in mind, Dean was happy to see Cas, Claire, and Sam emerge from the hotel. Dean barely waited for Cas to open the back door to the Impala before barraging him with questions. "So Cas, you said Gabriel was different. How is that, exactly?"

Castiel blinked up at him as he clamored into the back seat. From his tussled hair to his rumpled trench coat it looked like he had just woken up. "What do you mean?" His voice was deeper too.

"You mentioned before that he was different than the other archangels and obviously he picked somewhere different to set up shop. So what kind of person is he? Moody? Secretive? Sadistic?"

Cas tilted his head to the side, giving the comment some serious thought before responding with an absolutely straight face, "Hedonistic."

A snort of disbelief sounded from the passenger's seat and Dean glanced over at his brother. "What's with you?" No way was Dean going to admit that he didn't know what "hedonistic" meant. It was enough that he couldn't even finish high school, skipping out instead with a G.E.D. while Sammy went on to get an advanced degree from Stanford. He didn't need to remind everyone.

Sam apparently knew he didn't know anyway. "Saying Gabriel's hedonistic means that he's self-indulgent, that he's a pleasure seeker. It's just not what I was expecting from an archangel."

"Gabriel is unique." Castiel's tone was abnormally dry, making Dean think that the other angel didn't entirely approve.

"Okay, so the guy's into the finer things in life. L.A. has a lot of places for that, so where do we go?"

A spark lit in Sammy's eyes. "You're right, there are a lot of places, but what's on the top of the list? What's the most luxurious place in L.A. you can think of?"

Dean shrugged. He didn't really pay too much attention to that kind of stuff. "I dunno, Hollywood?"

"Close. The rich and famous are there but so are the not so rich and famous. No, I think our first stop should definitely be where the wealthy make up nearly the entire population: Beverly Hills."

"Beverly Hills, that's where I want to be, living in Beverly Hills." Dean shot a grin over at his brother as he put the Impala and gear and began to steer her towards the main road. "Get it? Like that one song?"

"I get it, Dean. Can you please just drive us there?"

"Alright, alright, killjoy. And remember, you're going to be the one who's gonna start to feel Gabriel's affects the strongest, so you let me know if I'm going in the right direction. Or if it gets too bad for you, you better tell me so I can get you out of there, you hear me, Sammy?"

"Sure, fine."

Dean wasn't convinced that Sam was ever going to complain but he let it slide, figuring that his brother got enough of a lecture that morning to know that Dean wasn't kidding around. Castiel leaned forward from the backseat, "How far is Beverly Hills from our current location?"

Shrugging, Dean watched as Sam pulled his smartphone back out. After a quick search, Sam's face fell into a frown, "Uh…about twenty five minutes. Or an hour and a half with traffic."

A scowl appeared on Dean's lips as well, "Is there traffic?"

"Probably. But we might be able to get into the carpool lane which should save us about…fifteen minutes."

"I freaking hate L.A."

OoOoOo

"L.A. is awesome!"

Dean turned onto Santa Monica Boulevard with a huge grin on his face. Gone was the concrete jungle of downtown L.A., the road instead lined with fancy storefronts, beautiful houses, palm trees, and gorgeous people. The drive over had been hellish but the sights pretty much made up for it. The rest of the Impala's occupants didn't seem to find it as enchanting however; Claire was looking out the window but more out of boredom than anything else, Cas seemed completely disinterested, and Sam had his head resting against the glass on the side window but had his eyes shut tight.

Noticing the was Sammy's lips were pressed tightly together and the furrow in his brow, Dean refocused on what needed to be done. "How you holding up?"

"We're definitely getting closer. That queasy feeling I described earlier just turned into a full-blown migraine."

Dean tried to stamp down his protective streak. Earlier this morning Sam had seemed dead set on seeing this through so Dean was going to try and let him. "That sucks for you but is great news for us. Looks like we finally got it right. Can you tell where we should be heading next?"

"Not exactly but…it gets a little worse when you head north so I guess you should start moving us in that direction."

"If you say so."

For the next ten minutes or so, Dean followed Sam's vague directions with a small input every now and again from Cas. Eventually Dean found that he had driven them into the hills of Beverly Hills where apparently all the super wealthy shacked up. By now he knew for sure he was having a much better time than everyone else in the car, that fact made clear when he decided to stop to buy a five dollar map of the V.I.P. of the neighborhood from a street vendor. Sam had bitched his ears off and even Cas had given him a short glare for pausing their search but Dean didn't care; now he knew where Mick Jagger lived and he was definitely finding an excuse to drive by his house on the way out of town.

After another five minutes, Sam called for Dean to stop the car, insisting that they had to be close enough to finish the search on foot. Castiel was out the door as soon as Dean pulled over to the curb, the angel's blue eyes scanning the massive mansions around them with a suspicious eye as Dean grabbed his map and followed suit.

He met Sam on the sidewalk, his brother holding one hand to his head as if to keep his brain from exploding. "You doing alright?"

Sam pursed his lips then apparently figured it would be stupid to lie when clearly he was having issues. "I've been better. But I've been worse too, I'll be fine."

Claire slid up next to her father. "Is Gabriel in one of these houses?"

The angel nodded back down to her, "It appears so. Can you sense his presence at all, Claire?"

For a moment Dean couldn't figure out why Cas was asking her instead of Sammy, then realized that although Castiel's own angel mojo had been switched off Claire's was growing. If Cas was supposed to be able to easily locate Gabriel it made sense that Claire might at least have an inkling about where he was. But it seemed that they were going to have to depend on Demon Radar rather than Angel Radio as Claire shook her head, "I haven't felt anything like that yet. I'm sorry, Daddy"

Cas almost looked relieved. "You have done nothing wrong, Claire, there is no need for you to apologize."

Stepping in now that he was their only archangel compass, Sam took a couple steps forward then turned around and began to walk. "I'm pretty sure it's this way."

Dean glanced down at his map as they passed by fancy house after fancy house. "Sound a little bit more confident in yourself, it'll make the rest of us feel better."

"My head's splitting, Dean, I can barely hear myself think."

"Then stop thinking and just keep walking."

Truth was, Dean was getting more nervous with every step they took which is why he had snatched the map out of the car. It gave him something to pay attention to in order to get his mind off of what was actually happening. Not only was Sam feeling more and more pain as the demon inside of him reacted to the holy presence of an archangel but with every inch of pavement they crossed over Dean was marching closer to said archangel. Like angels weren't dangerous enough, he was hand delivering himself and everyone he cared about to something even full-fledged demons were afraid of.

More than that though, by the looks of it they were about to find Gabriel and after that Cas wouldn't need Dean to stay. He and Claire would be safe and go live their own life, leaving Dean to do the same. The problem was that Dean had started to like having Cas and Claire _in_ that life. He honestly enjoyed Claire's company; she was smart, adorable, and had the potential to be the kid that Dean had always wanted. And then there was Cas…Dean wanted the chance to follow Sam's advice and take it slow. Not that he knew if Castiel was even interested. Not that it mattered anyway.

A muffled shout reached Dean's ears and he lowered his stars map just in time to see Sam collapse onto the sidewalk, his head clutched in his hands. Dean let the map fall forgotten to the pavement as he raced forward, kneeling down beside where his brother had pulled himself up into the fetal position. Blood was trickling from Sam's nose and his lips were pressed so tightly together they had started to turn white. "Cas! Cas, hold up!" Leaning over Sam, Dean tried to get a better look at him as Castiel and Claire stopped and turned back to face them. "Sam? Sam, can you hear me?"

Dean saw him swallow and grit his teeth, his fingers digging into his shaggy hair. "Y-yeah. We, we must be, really close!"

"Alright, hang on."

Fuck trying to smother his protective streak; he had let this go on for too long. Looking up, Dean saw that Cas and Claire had made their way over and were watching Sam with concern. "Cas, grab Sam's other arm and help me drag him back a couple of feet."

"Of course."

Between the two of them, Dean and Castiel quickly managed to drag Sammy back far enough that he was able to breathe easier, his fingers loosening their death grip from his hair as his eyes flickered back open. Squatting down to catch his own breath, Dean watched as Sam blinked, automatically trying to get the blackness that had covered his eyes to fade back to hazel but it wasn't working this time.

"That better, Sammy?"

Nodding, Sam slowly pushed himself up into a sitting position. "Yeah, yeah. Thanks."

Dean watched him for a moment, "Your eyes are still all demon-ish."

Sucking in a deep breath of air, Sam nodded again. "Yeah. I can't get it to stop."

Cas knelt so that he was at Sam and Dean's eyelevel, the angel's gaze boring into Sam's. "We must be within yards of an archangel now."

Sam reached up with a shaking arm and wiped the blood from his nose onto his sleeve. "It was that, that house." He nodded up towards the mansion looming in front of it. Sam had gone down as soon as they crossed in front of its yard. Most of the building was obscured by a grove of willow trees but a few corners of an imposing brick building were still visible through the foliage. "As soon as we got close to it, I just couldn't take it anymore."

Turning his eyes back on Sam as he tried to stand back up, Dean put a hand on his brother's shoulder to keep him from moving. "Easy, Sammy. Take it easy." No way was he good to go after collapsing to the ground. "After that, I think you need a little more time to rest. In fact, now that we now where old Gabe is, it's about time to get you the hell away from here."

"No, Dean. I'm not leaving you here to face an archangel."

"I do not believe that Gabriel will be a danger to your brother."

Dean was surprised to have Castiel on his side. "What he said. Besides, you almost passed out. Even if the guy doesn't smite you on sight, your eyes would probably start bleeding or break out in boils or something if you got to close."

"It has been known to happen."

Dean whipped his gaze up to Castiel. "Seriously?"

"Yes, if Gabriel wishes it. I do not think he would, unless it amused him, but I am not entirely certain of his views toward demons. Because of this, it would be wise for you to come no closer than you have, Sam." Looking over Dean's shoulder to where Claire was watching with wide eyes, Cas seemed to make up his mind. "Rather than come with me to speak with Gabriel, I'd prefer it if you could take Claire away for an hour or so during our conversation. Until I can convince Gabriel to protect her, she is in as much danger as you are. If an angel catches her and realizes what she is, it will not end well." They would kill her. Even Dean could read between the lines on that one.

Realizing that this time Castiel and Dean were both in agreement, Sam finally relented. He either knew he was right or was just really tired of being in pain. Maybe both. "…I'll need the keys to the Impala."

Willing to give up the keys to his baby if it meant Sam and Claire would be safe, Dean dug his key ring out of his pocket and threw it at Sam. "Fill up the tank while you're out."

Sam made a face before clamoring to his feet, looking about as steady as a newborn calf. Dean probably shouldn't be letting him drive in that condition but it was better than letting him stay where he was.

After making sure that he was taking Claire along with him, Dean turned back to Castiel, "I'm staying with you, by the way. And that's not negotiable."

"Fine."

Dean was glad he didn't argue because no way was he going to leave the angel alone for this. If he didn't know any better, he'd have said that Cas looked scared.

He was definitely acting a little bit frightened, standing stock still in front of the mansion even after Sammy and Claire had driven away.

"So…Are you going to go to the door?"

"Yes."

"It's been like four minutes since you last moved, Cas."

"I am aware."

Despite the angel's obvious anxiety a small smile slipped across Dean's face. This conversation seemed familiar. He was just happy to be the one on the other side of it this time. "You want me to walk with you up to the door?"

Catching Dean's smile, Cas frowned before realization sparked in his eyes. Some of the nervousness seemed to melt from him as he sent Dean a small, almost subconscious smile back, "I do not require your presence but perhaps it would be better if you did so. Just so you wouldn't be a surprise."

Dean's grin grew, glad that he had got the angel to relax a little, and fought off the unbidden urge to reach out and run his fingertips across Cas's cheek. He didn't smile a lot and the expression looked really good on him. Dean didn't know where the hell that thought had come from but he knew where it was going: deep into the back of his mind with all the other crap he never wanted to deal with.

"Come on then and let's get this over with."

Grudgingly Castiel gave into Dean's urging and stiffly made his way up the long driveway towards the mansion lying in wait. The building itself looked old, established, probably built back in the twenties or thirties and covered with brick and ivy. It screamed of old money but the cherry red Ferrari in parked sideways out front gave more of a "rock star" impression.

Both the house and the Ferrari seemed like background noise though as Dean walked behind Castiel, watching as the angel stopped at the front step, took a deep breath, and rang the doorbell.


	5. Chapter 5

Ahh! Another long wait! I'm sorry! To make up for it I made this chapter extra long. Unfortunately I still don't anticipate my speed improving much for Chapter 6. In six days now myself, my sister, and our former roommate will be heading out on a semi-epic two week long road trip to the southeast. If you live down there or just want to point and laugh at three Californians stumbling around the South, there'll probably be some updates about it on my journal as the trip commences. I'm hoping I'll be able to find some wireless internet somewhere so I can update from the road, so cross your fingers!

Thank you sooo much to all those who left reviews for the last chapter: keiko-uchiha, supreme dramon, egyptian1995, Pilali, ChaosGarden, ramen-is-my-goddess, HumanElement, and indigoskies7! I couldn't do this without all of your love and support!

O

* * *

><p>Chapter 5<p>

* * *

><p>As soon as Castiel's finger lifted from the doorbell Dean's vision went white. Sort of. Instead of staring at the rich dark wood of the front door to an archangel's mansion Dean suddenly found himself looking at a white wall instead. Stumbling back, Dean nearly jumped out of his skin as he bumped into something solid before he whipped around, "Jesus Christ, Cas!"<p>

Castiel grabbed his arms, his blue eyes deadly serious. "Remain calm, Dean."

"How am I supposed to stay calm?" Spinning back around, Dean took in his new surroundings. They were inside a room with hardwood floors and white ten foot walls, gold crown molding decorating the very top. But there were no windows, no doors, they were definitely not outside anymore and Dean had no idea how they'd gotten there. "What the hell _was_ that?"

"My brothers are simply trying to make a point." Pulling his hands away, Castiel took a moment to examine the room himself. "Stay behind me though, when they begin to appear."

"Appear?" Dean scoffed, "What, are they going to come out in a puff of smoke or someth—?"

His sentence was cut off by the echoing sound of flapping wings, followed by a man's voice. "Not exactly."

Turning to face the noise, Dean found himself facing a stranger who was very obviously inhuman. It wasn't that he didn't look like a human on the outside. In fact he looked like a thirty-something man with tawny blond hair and a dry smirk wearing a v-neck t-shirt under a sports jacket. What gave him away was a strange pulse of power coming off of him. That and of course the lack of doors or windows didn't seem to stop him from entering into the room.

Dean openly stared for only half a second before remembering Cas's advice and took a couple of steps back until he was standing behind his angel. Meanwhile Castiel had kept his own eyes locked firmly on the newcomer. Dean couldn't read his emotions but he was definitely not relaxed which immediately warned Dean to be on guard.

"Balthazar. I did not expect to find you here."

The other man simply gave a light shrug as he strolled closer to Cas. This is what angels were normally like? Cas seemed powerful enough but this Balthazar guy was practically humming with an energy that put all of Dean's human instincts on high alert. It almost felt hard to breathe and when Balthazar shot a quick glance in his direction it felt like there were a hundred pairs of eyes staring at him instead. Is this what Castiel would be like at full power too? God. It was unnerving but…at the same time, Dean really hoped he was there when Cas got his mojo back. He was pretty sure that the already stunning angel would take his breath away. Wait, that had come out wrong. He meant…Dammit, that was exactly what he'd meant.

"Ah, Castiel." Between the other angel's British accent and his grin, Dean couldn't help but think that Balthazar would do well with the ladies. His charms seemed lost on Cas though. "Always lovely to see you as well. I can see you are still dedicated to your bestiality fetish."

Dean's eyebrows shot up and he instantly forgot the need to hide himself. "_Excuse me_?"

Balthazar spared Dean him his second look of the day along with a roll of his eyes. "I was referring to you. Castiel has always had a strange attraction toward _humans_." From behind Dean saw Cas's back straighten, his chin tilting up in a light defiance. "But how you decide to spend your free time, Castiel, is, of course, none of my business."

As Dean fought down a flush, Cas's eyes narrowed in confusion. "Dean and I are not romantically involved."

"No? My mistake then. Your mistake, however, was coming here. What _are_ you doing here, Castiel?"

"Looking for Gabriel. It is of the utmost importance that I speak with him."

Balthazar lifted a brow, the look somehow condescending. "Gabriel? Whatever would you want to speak to him about?"

"It's…" Cas stumbled on his words for a moment, "It is my daughter. She is becoming of age and her abilities are beginning to—"

Balthazar cut Castiel off with a wave of his hand. "Be careful with what you say, Cassie. Big brother is watching and listening."

"He is here then?"

"Not the one you were hoping to see."

A second passed before Dean felt like he had been punched in the gut as the other angel's words settled over him. They had come all the way from freaking Kansas, fought demons, only to get to L.A. and find that their goal has gone AWOL? Cas had been so freaking sure the archangel was here Dean had never even stopped to think that he might've been wrong.

Balthazar's claim seemed to have a similar effect on Castiel, his angel taking a small, almost subconscious step back towards Dean. "What do you mean?"

"Gabriel was called away by Michael and Raphael is here in his stead to help 'clean up his messes'. If you were wise, you would leave before he notices he has a visitor."

"Shit."

Dean was pretty sure Cas had gotten the cuss word from him. He would've been proud but right now he was a little busy being worried. "What does that mean? This Raphael dude's an archangel too, right?" He had definitely heard that name tossed around once or twice in some holy books. "Can't you just ask him instead?"

Swallowing, Cas looked back over his shoulder and Dean's heart dropped down to about his knees as he saw a hint of fear in those blue eyes before he turned away again. "No. That would be a bad idea."

Balthazar lazily raised a brow, "That's putting it mildly, considering that last time Castiel and Raphael met Raphael tried to kill him. Unless you've already forgotten that little incident."

"I haven't forgotten—"

Dean cut in and took a step forward, closing the gap between him and Cas so that he could actually see his angel's face. "Wait, what? He tried to kill you? Why?"

Before Castel could even open his mouth to speak, Balthazar took the liberty of explaining. "Raphael is strict and tends to take over the role as discipliner whenever Michael is away. He felt he needed to straighten our little wayward solider here out, but his plan rather backfired. Usually he is away on business but for the last half a month or so he has been gracing us here with his presence while Gabriel meets with Michael." Balthazar's tone suggested that he and others were less than thrilled about it. "Bad luck on your part, I'm afraid."

What the hell, when had this all gotten so complicated? The one thing Dean knew for sure though is that Gabriel wasn't here and that his replacement wanted Castiel dead. They had to leave. Now. "What the hell are we still doing here? Come on, Cas, let's get the hell outta dodge."

Dean grabbed Castiel's arm and tried to pull him away but Cas held firm, his gaze still locked on the second angel. "Wait, Dean. Balthazar, do you know where Gabriel is?"

Shrugging, Balthazar eyed Castiel curiously. "I have my suspicions."

"Tell me." Cas was using that firm, no-nonsense tone that Dean found himself unable to go against but Balthazar seemed to be far less affected.

"I could get in a lot of trouble for this, Castiel."

"Please, brother!" Dean's eyes jerked back over to Castiel at the desperation that had slipped into the other's voice. Castiel was begging.

This time even Balthazar seemed slightly taken off guard by the urgency in Cas's tone. The other angel's eyes widened for a fraction of a second in surprise before he readopted his nonchalant attitude. Heaving a sigh as if it was a huge inconvenience for him, he leaned back against one of the walls. "Very well, for the sake of our history, Cassie." Dean felt himself bristle up slightly at the implications running through that sentence but neither of the angels had their gaze on him. "From what I've heard, Michael called Gabriel to New York. I wasn't told what; I'm not high enough on the food chain to get any more details than that."

New York? Seriously? What the hell! Of course Gabriel was on the opposite side of the United States from where they were. After all they had gone through, not only was Gabriel not here but he was over three thousand miles away! Son of a bitch.

Castiel had a pensive frown on as he nodded towards Balthazar, "Thank you for helping us."

"Yes, well, don't go spreading such rumors around. None of us would do well if certain people found out about—Damn, speak of the devil…"

Cas tilted his head in confusion but before he could ask a question there was the sound of flapping wings and another man—angel—seemed to materialize out of thin air beside Balthazar. "Well, well, well. What do we have here?"

Dean tensed as Cas took another step back towards him, his angel's expression suddenly blank. Looking back at the newcomer with his business-man suit, slight paunch, and blading dome he didn't exactly look like the embodiment of intimidation but both Balthazar and Castiel seemed to close in on themselves. When Balthazar smirked it had been smarmy but charming but the grin on this guy's face was something you'd see on a used car dealer. "Balthazar, you didn't tell me we had company. Just what sort of gentlemen are you?"

With one last glance at Castiel, Balthazar offered the new angel a tight grin, "The sort that knows when to make an exit. Hope your luck turns around." Then he was gone in a flutter of invisible wings. Coward.

The new angel sneered at the spot where Balthazar disappeared before turning to look back at Castiel. "Oh, it's a little too late for luck, I think."

Seeing Castiel's hands clench into fists at his side, Dean stepped forward, close enough now that Dean's chest was inches from pressing against Cas's back. This guy was obviously a big player and no way was Dean going to let Cas think he had to face him on his own. "So, who are you supposed to be: Raphael, Leonardo, Michelangelo, or Donatello?"

For the first time, the angel looked at Dean and it was as if he were looking at an ant crawling on the floor. "Try Zachariah, and you'd better start watching your tone. You must think you're pretty cute, don't you?"

Thank God this douche wasn't Rafael. Dean grinned as he allowed a sliver of relief to wash through him. "I think I'm adorable."

"You're a fool, as are you, Castiel, for coming here." And just like that, Zachariah's gaze was back on Cas. "You know I can't just let you go, right?"

Castiel's blue eyes darkened. "Zachariah, listen to me—"

"You are in no position to give _me_ orders. You walked in here knowing that we had orders to hunt you and your abomination of a daughter down, so in my opinion you're just getting exactly what you deserve. Of course you had to get this guy," Zachariah jabbed a thumb in Dean's direction, "involved too. You know we can't let him leave either."

Cas's response to the threat was immediate. Before Zachariah even had his mouth closed the sound of rustling filled the air and Castiel's wings appeared, the dark feathers ruffled and outstretched, the enormous appendages almost spanning the entire room. The gust of air from the wings unfurling knocked Dean back half a step, his eyes widening as Cas's wings rose a little higher. This was different than how Cas had reacted when he and Dean had first met. That had been solely defensive but even Dean could tell that this was meant as pure intimidation. He was totally peacocking. "You will not harm me, you will not harm my daughter, and you _will not_ harm Dean.

Even as Castiel's voice lowered into a dangerous growl, the smirk on Zachariah's face never wavered. "Oh really? And just who do you think will stop me? You? Please, you're so drained you're practically human yourself."

"I still have some Grace left and I swear that if you attempt to do us harm I will use every last ounce I have remaining to destroy your body."

Dean saw Zachariah's confidence flicker just for a moment but he quickly covered it up with a scoff. "That's not much of a threat. Meat suits grow back, Castiel."

"Yes, but it takes time, and it is painful." Cas's wings flexed, the inky black feathers rippling, "We are leaving, now."

All the humor had left the other angel's face by now, replaced with a piercing severity. "There's nowhere far enough for you to run that we won't find you, Castiel. Sooner or later you and your daughter will find yourselves faced with one of our brethren and they will strike you and your sacrilegious creation down where you stand. Well," Zachariah shrugged, "unless some Hell spawn finds you first. Then you'll all just be kindling in Lucifer's fireplace."

"It's a chance I am willing to take." Slowly, cautiously, Castiel reached back towards Dean as if afraid that any movement would give Zachariah a reason to attack. Dean stretched out his own hand to meet him halfway and as soon as their fingers touched there was a bright flash of light, a gust of air, and the world seemed to fall out from under Dean's feet. As suddenly as the sensations started they were over and Dean was once again standing outside of the Beverley Hills mansion, staring at the front door. Freaking angels.

He didn't realize he was still holding onto Cas's hand until the angel began to tug him away from the door and back toward the sidewalk, wings safely tucked away. "We should run."

Knowing what was inside that house waiting to kill them, Dean found it hard to argue with Castiel's plan. They pushed themselves into a pace just short of a sprint and dashed out to the road then turned left. Dean didn't know where they were going, but anywhere else was going to be an improvement. As they left it behind in its grove of willow trees, the mansion seemed to be emitting a dangerous aura all its own, like if Dean stayed too long the house itself would try to kill him. Dean wasn't sure how that would even be possible but he was sure that douchebag Zachariah would figure out a way to make it happen.

After what felt like a mile and a half, Dean waved for them to slow down. Panting, he fell in line beside Castiel who seemed unfairly unaffected by their run. "Do you think we lost them?"

"No. But it should be safe to take a short break, as long as we move on soon." Swallowing, Castiel turned to face Dean, his blue eyes wide. "Dean, I cannot begin to express my apologies for having to put you through that."

Castiel's voice was tense, on the verge of panic and Dean couldn't help but try and soothe him a bit. "Hey, we're both alright, so it's fine."

"No, it's not. Dean," Cas grabbed Dean's arms, whether to steady himself or Dean he didn't know. His grip was hard as iron though, the places where his fingers pressed against Dean's skin almost hurting from the pressure. "I nearly got you killed. If I had done a little investigation before simply marching in I would've been able to find out that Gabriel wasn't there in advance."

"You couldn't've known the one week the dick decided to take off was the one we'd be looking for him." Though something in the very back of Dean's mind had to wonder about that certain set of circumstances. He didn't know how often archangels got called away on business but that Gabriel had been pulled off right when they needed him almost seemed a little too inconvienent.

"Maybe." Letting his hands slide down Dean's arms before letting them hang at his sides, Cas motioned with his head that they should keep moving. "Nonetheless, there were certain risks that I shouldn't have taken with you at my side."

Dean couldn't help the grin that snuck onto his lips as they started walking. If Dean's sense of direction was right, and it actually usually was, they were heading back towards the commercial section of Beverley Hills where all the shops were. Distance still mattered more than direction though; they'd be able to call Sam for a pick-up from anywhere. Right now there was still something more important on his mind. The fact that he had narrowly escaped death was starting to set in thanks to Cas's reaction and he realized that this day could've ended much worse than just not being able to find Gabriel. "Risks? You mean like that little wing show of yours?"

He knew he had got it in one when Cas's cheeks lit up in a faint blush. "Yes. I shouldn't have done that. Zachariah is very powerful and could have beaten me easily at such a challenge. We are lucky he did not realize just how drained my Grace is, otherwise he probably would've killed us both."

The blush was unexpected but it made Dean grin spread just as Castiel's words sent another wave of relief through his body. "Still, your bluff seemed like the only thing that got us out of there alive. I was just waiting for Zachariah to whip out his wings and a ruler."

"What? Never mind." Cas shook his head, "Dean, I wish you wouldn't make light of this. It's a very serious matter."

"I know it is, I get it!" And Dean did. Basically they had been screwed over by an archangel who decided to take a vacation right when they needed his help. Now not only were demons after them but angels were too and even if demons couldn't get at them in Los Angeles it was an angel hot zone. Dean was pretty sure that his life expectancy had just been shortened by about fifty years, so, hey, "I just like celebrating the small things in life, like not getting killed by an angel. Besides, the look on Zach's face when your wings came out was priceless. And who knew you were such a BAMF?"

Cas's head tilted slightly, his blue eyes flickering over to Dean, "What is that?"

"Sexy."

Dean's mouth snapped shut, but it was too late. The word had already slipped out before Dean had time to filter his freaking mouth. But then the flush on Castiel's cheeks spread and as something warm sparked in his blue eyes Dean figured the slip of the tongue was worth it.

"Perhaps that particular risk was a good one to take after all."

The conversation drifted away after that, leaving them in a surprisingly comfortable silence. After about a full hour of walking Castiel finally deemed it safe to call Sam. Sam, as it turned out, had patiently been freaking out about half a mile away with Claire at an ice-cream parlor, Dean barely getting a word in over the phone before Sam was speeding towards them with the Impala.

By the time he reached them, Dean and Cas had planted themselves firmly on a bench in a city park, watching a handful of kids goof off on a play structure about twenty yards away. It was weird, hearing those kids laugh like nothing was wrong. Like Heaven and Hell weren't both gunning for the angel sitting next to Dean and his daughter. Dean felt like he should tell them to stop but the sound of them playing was a little comforting in its own way. Cas seemed to find it soothing anyway, the angel settled back against the bench with his eyes closed.

Hearing the familiar rumble of the Impala, Dean's shoulder bumped Castiel's as he turned to look at the parking lot behind them. Sam spotted them after Dean gave him a quick wave, the younger Winchester all but tripping over himself as he and Claire jumped out of the car to come and meet them. The last time Dean had seen his brother his eyes had been pitch black but now they were back to their normal color and showing every ounce of his anxiety. "Dean! Cas! What happened?"

Castiel offered Claire a tight smile as the girl threw herself around her dad's waist. "Things did not go as planned."

As Dean snorted Sam let out a small huff of his own. "I guessed as much since nothing really seemed to change with Claire. What did Gabriel say?"

Dean looked up at his brother, "He didn't, and that's the problem. Turns out our archangel wasn't home."

"_What?_" Sam's eyebrows shot up to his hairline, "What took so long then?"

"Another archangel was there instead and his flunkies weren't exactly friendly."

Dean saw Sam's gaze quickly run over him and Cas to check for injuries, "Are you guys alright?"

This time Castiel answered but with a short sigh, "We are both unharmed, though the results easily could've been very different. We need to leave L.A. as soon as possible."

Claire looked up from where she had her face buried in her father's lap, her blue eyes startlingly intelligent for a child her age. "And go where?"

Cas sighed again, "We were told Gabriel is in New York, so that is where we will go next."

"_New York?_ Was it another angel who told you that, because I don't know if you can exactly trust them to tell the truth when they were the ones who were trying to hurt you back there. There has to be somewhere closer we can start to look or someone else we can ask before we set off clear across the country."

Sam's logic was hard to ignore but Dean knew that Cas was going to go on with this anyway. "An angel _did_ tell us, but it wasn't the same angel that—you know what? Forget it. Basically Cas and Claire need to get the hell outta here before some holy douchebag comes knockin' so they might as well go to New York in the meantime. Sammy," Looking up again, Dean met his brother's gaze, "you still onboard or are you going to head back to Stanford?"

Frowning, Sam's answer was immediate, "I'm coming with you, Dean."

"Good. That means you and me can take turns driving so if we push it all night we might be able to get to New York in about two days."

"Wouldn't it be faster to fly?"

Dean glared at his brother for even bringing that option up. "Sam, you know I can't do that." And screw you for mentioning it.

Immediately catching on, Sam wisely shut his mouth but Claire had to pick then to be curious. "I think he means fly in an airplane. You can do _that_."

A quick glance to his side showed that both Novak's eyes were on him with their intense stares boring into him. Dean was going to kill Sam for this. "I knew what he meant. I just, I can't fly, okay? It's a, a thing I have."

Cas's eyes widened with an understanding Dean wished they didn't have. "You have a phobia of flying. If I had all of my power back and was able to fly us all to New York, would you be unwilling to do so as well?"

Shifting in his seat, Dean felt like an ass for answering the way he was going to but he knew he'd feel even worse if he lied to Cas's face. "I mean, yeah, probably. I've never flown Air Angel before but if it's anything like the regular airlines I'd be a mess. It's why I drive everywhere." By now he was about done having the whole discussion focus on him and his faults, "But back to the important stuff, we really need to hit the road."

Castiel still seemed lost in thought so Sam was the one who had to answer. Maybe he was trying to make up for embarrassing Dean because he didn't argue at all with Dean's plan. "Alright. Let's get going."

OoOoOo

They drove east for hours and hours, the pavement rushing under the tires of the Impala like a black satin ribbon, the glare from the headlights bouncing off of the reflectors on the road brighter than the stars in the night sky that stretched out above them. Dean hadn't been joking about driving all night and he and Sam had been switching off every six hours. Ever since they had gotten out of the L.A. city limits they had left behind the immediate threat of an angel swooping down had been but it had been replaced by the looming sensation that dozens of demons were chasing their heels. Dean had already switched off with Sam once, had napped a little bit and had dreamed about clawed hands, red eyes, and fire. And the worst thing was waking up and realizing he couldn't even pray for help since the heavenly host was out to get him too.

Now Dean was back in the driver's seat and trying to pretend like he wasn't tired. Sam was just a little bit adorable snoozing in the backseat with Claire and with Cas sitting shotgun Dean could almost pretend that everything was okay. If only that timer wasn't ticking away in his head, every second added to their trip an added weight on his shoulders. And if _he_ was feeling that way, Dean couldn't begin to think what was going on behind Cas's calm exterior.

For the first time Dean honestly didn't mind the quiet between him and Cas in the car but he just felt like talking. Besides, he was worried about the angel. Making sure to keep his volume low so as not to wake up the two sleeping in the back, Dean snuck a quick look at Castiel. "So, how're you holding up?"

Castiel blinked, surprised by the question, before a small, wry smile made the corner of his mouth curl up. "As well as one could in my situation. My daughter's life is in danger as are the rest of our lives, Gabriel is nowhere to be found when I need him the most, and I have been forced into a cross-country scavenger hunt to locate him. On top of everything else, I disobeyed."

Hearing a strange finality in his friend's voice, Dean glanced over again. "So you disobeyed, what's the big deal?"

"Dean, disobeying is the greatest sin an angel could commit. _Lucifer_ disobeyed and you know what his punishment was. I have done the same without the benefit of myself being an archangel."

Dean frowned, "Well, do you regret what you did? With Amelia? Having Claire?"

Before Dean could even finish his question Cas was already responding. "No, of course not. How could I?"

"Then there's your answer. There's a big difference between you and Lucifer, Cas. The other douchebag angels might not get it but I'm sure the big man upstairs does."

"How can you be certain?"

"Because you haven't done anything wrong. You can't be punished for that."

Dean felt Cas's gaze on the side of his face, the look full of more gratitude than Dean had ever received in his life. "Thank you for saying so. I hope my Father has the same sense of justice as you, though the way things have been proceeding it appears he may feel differently."

"Hey, you and Claire are still alive, right? With all you've been through, _someone's_ gotta be watching out for you."

"That would be you, Dean."

Dean blinked at the warmth in Cas's voice when he had said Dean's name. Jesus, he didn't know how he was going to make it to New York without a cold shower if Cas kept this up. This was definitely not the time or place for his libido to be acting up, especially since he still didn't know if the angel was feeling anything remotely similar. Trying to cover up his spike of arousal with a joke, Dean cracked a quick grin in the angel's direction. "Well then screw God, right? Who cares what he thinks, we don't need his help anyway."

Castiel's eyes had gone wide but he realized Dean was joking he actually laughed. Okay, it was a chuckle, a weary chuckle, but still. Dean had barely seen Cas smile so this was like a banner year moment. "I have never heard someone say anything like that before in the presence of an angel."

"I'm not your average guy, Cas."

"I've noticed."

The warmth was back in Castiel's voice and Dean felt his own spirit swell back up in his chest. They could do this. They could totally do this. Screw God, screw Hell, and screw all the freaking angels. Dean and Sam were going to get Cas and Claire to New York, hunt down Gabriel, and force him into giving Claire his protection. That's how it was going to be. That was how it _had_ to be. Because this—Dean in the driver's seat of the Impala with Cas next to him and Sammy and Claire safe and secure behind him—this was perfect. This was what Dean wanted his life to be from now on and he was going to fight to make it happen.

Dean's new attitude carried him all the way to daybreak when his stomach began to rumble and he remembered he hadn't eaten in at least twelve hours. Sam woke in the backseat as Dean pulled the Impala into the parking lot of a gas station on a particularly lonely stretch of highway. "Ugh…what time's it? Where are we?"

A smirk landed on Dean's face as he watched Sammy wearily wipe a hand over his face in the rearview mirror. "It's six o' nine in the morning and we're somewhere between Denver, Colorado and Lincoln, Nebraska. Time for breakfast, Sammy."

Sam let out a grunt but fumbled for the car door handle as Claire began to stir beside him. Seeing that she was beginning to wake, Cas turned around and gently rested a hand on his daughter's shoulder. "We are stopping for food, Claire."

The young girl's nose wrinkled up before she turned over and cuddled a little closer to the corner between the seat and the car door. Although her face was buried against the upholstery, Dean could still barely make out what she was saying. Having to deal with a younger brother most of his life made him more fluent than most in "tired little kid" speak. "…Don't wanna get up…"

Castiel let out a small breath, "Claire, we may not get another opportunity to stop for a while."

"It's alright, Cas." Dean swung his own car door open, "Sammy 'n me will pick something up for her. Let her sleep for a little while longer." This couldn't be fun for the poor kid, stuck in the back seat of the Impala. Dean, Cas, and Sam might be kept occupied by their nerves but Claire was probably bored out of her mind. The more of it she could sleep through, the better.

"Thank you, Dean."

"No problem." Dean reached for his wallet, remembered he didn't have any cash, remembered that _Sam_ had money, then decided to leave his wallet where it was. "You want anything?"

The angel frowned in thought before shrugging, "Just something to eat and something to drink. Whichever items are the least expensive will do."

"You got it." Sliding out of the car, Dean left the keys in the Impala just in case they needed to make a quick getaway and followed Sam as he walked blearily towards the small store lodged inside main building of the gas station.

Dean caught up with Sammy at the door and the two simultaneously headed straight for the coffee pot at the far end of the store. "You're going to have to help me pick out something for Cas and Claire."

Sammy blinked, still trying to wake up as he poured himself a large cup of coffee. "What do they like to eat for breakfast?"

"Probably nothing we'll be able to find here." Dean scanned the small store. It had your usual selection of quickie mart items: bags of chips, candy, jerky, and sugary, prepackaged baked goods.

Sam let out a sigh beside him as he began to fill another cup full of coffee. Hopefully it was for him or Cas, because Sammy did not need to down two full cups of Joe and then sit down in a confined space for the rest of the day. "Just grab something then so we can get going. We need to hurry."

"Why?" Sam gave him an incredulous look so Dean elaborated, "I mean, I know _why_ we have to hurry but why would we need to hurry any faster than we already are? We're already pushing it pretty hard, there's not much more we can do to speed things up."

"Well we need to come up with something." Glancing around to make sure the shop keep had stepped into the back room, Sam leaned in closer. "Dean, we may have gotten off of the angels' radar but the demons are closing in."

"How do you know that?"

"I can, it's just…" Sam sighed, "Look, I can just feel it, okay?"

Dean scowled up at his brother who suddenly didn't seem able to meet his eyes. "You're going to have to be a little more specific."

"Alright, just, don't freak out, okay?"

"Freak out?" Shit, this did not bode well, "I don't freak out, I never freak out. Just spit it out!"

"You always freak out, Dean! Every time I—" Sam stopped midsentence as Dean leveled a glare at him. Rolling his eyes, he started again, "Look, it's a demon thing, alright? Do you remember when I was sixteen and started getting those migraines?"

"Yeah." Of course Dean remembered. The first time Sam had one he had nearly passed out because it had hurt him so bad. They had been alone at home and one minute they had been watching TV and eating some crappy frozen dinner Dean had microwaved and the next Dean was on the phone yelling at a 911 operator to send an ambulance because he thought his baby brother was having some sort of seizure. Things like that tended to stick with you.

"So," Sam pulled slightly constipated face, "so I didn't exactly ever tell you or Dad the truth about what always happened. I would get the headache but I'd also…see, things."

Dean narrowed his eyes. He couldn't believe there was something this big Sam hadn't told him for over six freaking years. "See things? What sort of things?"

"Sort of like…visions, I guess. Of things that were happening or were going to happen."

"And you didn't think I would've wanted to know this? That _Dad_ would've wanted to have this little, tiny detail?" The urge to punch Sam was so strong that Dean had to clench his fist at his side. He couldn't cause a scene, not now. "Christ, Sam. What else haven't you told me? You growing horns yet? Shooting fire out of your mouth now?"

Sam threw his hands up, his coffee coming dangerously close to spilling from his cup. "This is _exactly_ why I never told you, Dean! You always overreact! Would you just let me get to the point of why I even brought this up? We can argue about it later!"

"Fine, but you'd better talk fast."

"Just now, when I was sleeping in the backseat, I saw…something." Sam furrowed his brow, trying to pull up a memory of his dream as Dean continued to scowl at him. "It was us, you, me, Cas, and Claire, and we were being chased by, by something demonic. I didn't get a clear picture of it. But Dean, my visions don't always come true but they usually do and usually within hours of me having them. The faster we get moving the more likely we'll be able to get out of it."

Swearing, Dean snagged four packages of wrapped mini-doughnuts off one of the shelves. "How often are these 'visions' of yours wrong?"

"Honestly, not often, not unless I do something about it." Following Dean's lead, Sam grabbed a bottle of juice from a refrigerated display for Claire and they made their way towards the front counter. "They seem to center on demonic activity that'll affect me somehow."

"Sort of like a spidey sense?"

"I guess. I had a lot of them when I was using…" the 'demon blood' died on Sam's lips as they reached the counter. Pulling his wallet out, Sam slapped fifteen bucks on the counter, told the man and the register to keep the change, and began talking again as they walked back towards the door. "The last one I had before this was, was the night before Jess died. I'd actually hoped it had gone away, but I guess not."

"So in all likelihood demons will be on our asses soon." Great. As they pushed through the front door, a breath Dean didn't know he had been holding escaped him as he saw the Impala waiting for them across the parking lot. With all this talk of demons, a part of him had expected to come out and find nothing but a burned-out hull of a car waiting instead. "Is there anything we can do to fend them off if we can't outrun them?"

Sam shrugged a little hopelessly. "I can do my thing and if Cas has any juice left he can take down a few, but what I felt coming seemed big. Dangerous enough to get us all scared. If we had some holy water or even just some salt—I actually looked for it back there in the store but they didn't have nearly enough to do anything for us."

Salt? Dean knew about the holy water, but, "What are you talking about, Sammy? _Salt_ can take down demons?"

"Well it's not like it can kill them but it definitely makes them take a couple steps back. I heard that if you can get them to ingest a ridiculously large amount it can also force them out of their physical bodies and send them back down to Hell."

"But I've seen you eat plenty of things with salt on it."

"Small quantities won't hurt them, and since I'm only half it bothers me even less. But even I get uncomfortable if I eat too many salty things in one sitting. Sort of like a minor allergic reaction, I guess."

Dean shook his head then fell quiet as an idea began to form in his mind. "…If salt can force a demon out of its body…Do you think that if you downed a bag of rock salt that you could, I dunno, push all that demonic stuff out of you?"

A shadow flickered through Sammy's eyes before he shrugged again. "I don't know. I've never tried and I don't really want to."

"Why not? It seems like a pretty easy solution." By now they had reached the Impala. Dean automatically pulled the driver's side door open and slipped inside, barely even noticing as Castiel smoothly accepted a cup of coffee and the packaged doughnuts from him. "If it did work though…Jesus, we could've done it years ago and maybe you wouldn't have to go through all the shit you did growing up."

Sam clamored into the back, keeping just enough attention on the two cups of coffee he was carrying to make sure that none of it spilled on the car's interior. "Maybe, maybe not. But like I said, I wouldn't want to. Okay, maybe fifteen year old me would've downed a whole bag without a moment of hesitation but now, I've, come to terms with who I am. With _what_ I am. Even with everything that's happened, I wouldn't do anything to change it because it's not inherently evil or unnatural; this is how I was born, what I was born to be. And now I'm just starting to realize it's who I _want _to be."

Through the whole part of the conversation they had heard, Cas had remained silent, Claire too semiconscious tucked away in her corner to bother to listen. But as Sam stunned Dean into silence the angel finally warily stepped in. "I am sure that the two of you will need to finish this discussion later, but has something happened that I need to know about?"

Dean glared into the dashboard as he and Sam got themselves resettled. "Turns out that while Sam was asleep back there he had a little dream about us getting chased down by some Hell bitch."

Cas's eyes narrowed in concerned and he turned to face Sam as Dean began to pull out of the gas station. "Predictive visions are not an unheard of ability for half-demons and would be expected for one of your caliber, Sam." Dean snorted under his breath, annoyed about how easily Cas just accepted Sam's new issue, but was ignored by the rest of them. "Are you sure it was a vision and not simply some sort of nightmare?"

Whereas Dean was annoyed at Castiel's easy acceptance of Sammy's visions, Sam himself seemed hugely relieved. "Pretty sure. I can tell the difference between the two fairly well by now and it definitely felt like a vision. There are demons coming and closing in fast."

"I did not sense them coming…"

Dean glanced over as Castiel's voice trailed off to find the angel staring down almost accusingly at the cup of coffee in his lap. "If you can't sense them does that mean that maybe Sam's wrong about this one?"

"It's much more likely that I have lost the ability to sense them. Considering the Grace I used when facing Zachariah, I shouldn't be surprised but at this rate I'm afraid that within only a few hours I will be no more use to you than an ordinary human being would be."

"Oh, well…" That was _really_ bad timing. "I'm sure you'll still be pretty badass even as a human." That left Sammy as their only protection against whatever was coming for them. And if Dean remembered right it had taken his brother a while to exorcise the small-time demon who had nearly gutted him back in California so if he were to take on the big guy that was heading their way…

They were dead. If Sam's vision came true, which it probably would judging by his proclaimed track record, none of them were going to make it to another sunrise. Dean pressed his lips into a thin line and pushed the gas pedal down as far as it would go.

Another few hours passed, every minute blurring into the next. Unlike before, the tension from Sam's revelation hung heavy around them now. Claire had finally woken up but even she seemed to know better than to make a lot of noise and seemed to be trying to be content nibbling on the cheap doughnuts they bought her. Dean was trying to focus on the road, keeping his eyes out for cops, and his speedometer so it was Sam who finally broke the silence, his voice tight. "Dean, could you please turn on the radio or something?"

"Good idea."

Lurching for the dial, Dean quickly dialed in his favorite classic rock station. They were driving back through his neck of the woods now, just north of the Kansas state border, and the familiar sound helped a little. Even Cas seemed to enjoy the small change in atmosphere, a hint of the anxiety melting away from his eyes.

Dean laughed dryly to himself as the song switched over. "Freakin' Bon Jovi. Of course…"

He felt Sam tap him on the shoulder. "Turn it up, will you?"

"Why not?" Rolling his eyes, Dean turned the dial up and leaned back in his chair. The lyrics slipped easily over his tongue as he started to murmur along with Jon Bon Jovi. "...This one goes out to the man who mines for miracles. This one goes out to the ones in need…"

Despite himself a smile crept onto his face as he heard Sam join him from the back seat. "This one goes out to the sinner and the cynical. This ain't about no apology."

Cas was looking at them like they were nuts, Claire was looking at them like they were something magical, and Dean knew that they needed this, as stupid as it was so he sang a little louder and it wasn't long before Sam had matched his volume level. "This road was paved by the hopeless and the hungry, this road was paved by the winds of change. Walking beside the guilty and the innocent, how will you raise your hand when they call your name? Yeah, yeah, yeah."

Dean laughed at how tone deaf they both were but it didn't even matter anymore. "We weren't born to follow, come on and get up off your knees! When life is a bitter pill to swallow, you gotta hold on to what you believe!" In the rearview mirror Sam was nodding along to the music, his floppy hair swinging around and suddenly Dean appreciated Bon Jovi in a way he never had before as he belted out the next lines, "Believe that the sun will shine tomorrow and that your saints and sinners bleed. We weren't born to follow. You gotta stand up for what you believe! Let me hear you say yeah, yeah, yeah, oh yeah!"

Behind him, Claire let out a loud laugh as Sam began to play an air guitar and Castiel looked back as if in awe that his child had made such a happy sound. Dean grinned and began to drum on the steering wheel. "This one's about anyone who does it differently. This one's about the one who cusses and spits. This ain't about our living in a fantasy. This ain't about giving up or giving in! Yeah, yeah, yeah."

The next time the chorus came around Claire had joined in, just as off key as the rest of them but having more fun than Dean had ever seen. "We weren't born to follow! Come on and get up off your knees! When life is a bitter pill to swallow, you gotta hold on to what you believe! Believe that the sun will shine tomorrow and that your saints and sinners bleed. We weren't booorn to follow. You gotta stand up for what you believe! Let me hear you say yeah! Yeah! Yeah! Oooooh yeah!"

Feeling something brush over his fingers, Dean looked down just in time to see Cas's hand give his a light squeeze before pulling away, the angel's palm brushing over Dean's knuckles as he drew back. Dean grinned at him but kept right on signing. Even knowing that demons were coming for them, the optimism Dean had felt this morning came rushing back into his veins.

They were going to make it through this somehow and Dean would be damned if he didn't see another sunrise. He just couldn't think about how literal that promise might be.

The song ended too soon but Sam and Dean finished it off in style, Sam wailing on his air guitar and Dean drumming the crap out of his steering wheel. Claire was still giggling and as Dean grinned back at her in the rearview mirror he had to wonder how often she got to act her age. The kid had to have a spirit as strong as steel to be able to survive everything she'd been put through. Knowing that there were things out there who wanted to kill you couldn't be easy for a seven year old child, much less being shipped around the country knowing that the one thing that could save her kept slipping through their fingers.

As they all settled back down Dean was glad to see that the tension had lifted somewhat. Although a grim frown had snuck back onto Cas's face and Sam was staring pensively out the window, the air inside the car was a little lighter and easier to handle, the road a little less endless.

Inevitably two hours later Dean was forced to make another stop but this time it came from an unexpected source. For the last thirty minutes Cas had been shifting in his seat, which was definitely weird since the angel never seemed to move. Worried that something was about to go wrong and ruin the fragile sense of peace they had just pieced back together, Dean had to ask him about it. "What's up with you, Cas?"

The frown on Castiel's lips deepened for a moment before dissolving with a slight flush. "I believe I have to make use of a restroom."

Dean's eyebrows shot up and Sammy and even Claire perked up in the backseat. "What? Seriously?" It shouldn't be this big of a deal but Dean had literally never seen Cas go into a bathroom for anything other than washing his hands off or a quick shower. He never even seemed to need a shower, just did it as if for the sake of social acceptance.

"Unfortunately yes. With my full power it would not be necessary but now…."

Castiel didn't have to finish that thought for Dean to know what he was going to say. The more Grace Cas lost, the more human he was, which apparently meant he was starting to need everything a human would to live. Dean tried to play it cool if only for the sake of Cas's dignity which had to already be feeling quite the sting. They shouldn't have filled the angel's coffee cup quite so high that morning. "Alright, we'll make a pit stop at the next gas station. We're running low on fuel anyway. Though that does mean your first bathroom break will probably be the worst example of a toilet you'll get."

"Then anything else I will experience in the future will only be an improvement."

"Good point."

The closest station Dean found was seven miles away and as soon as he shifted the Impala into park Cas was out the door and hurrying toward the main building. Dean took just a moment longer to step out himself, followed closely by Sam and Claire, all of them glad for another chance to stretch their legs.

Turning around, Dean scanned up and down the highway then looked over at Sammy. "It feels like we're making really good time."

Sam nodded, "Yeah. I think we might've actually lost them. I mean, I don't know for sure, but we might have done it."

"Hopefully." Dean had given it everything he'd got. If he'd driven any faster it would've been suicidal. "I think we've definitely earned ourselves a five minute break. Claire, what do you say you and me make sure your dad's doing alright?" He also wanted to give the girl a chance to use the facilities if she needed to herself. He and Sammy had both used the old pull-over-and-step-behind-some-trees method themselves on this trip but he wanted to give her the chance to use an actual toilet if she needed to. Claire nodded quickly, apparently happy to go wherever Dean went.

With a quick word to Sam about watching the car, Dean and Claire followed Castiel's footsteps into the gas station. Inside the restrooms were easy to locate in the one room shop, the worker only glancing up once from their magazine to give the two of them a funny look as they leaned up against the wall near the bathroom door. Dean ignored the attendant and went right ahead and knocked on the door. "You in there, Cas?"

"Yes, Dean."

The angel's voice was muffled through the wooden door but still audible. "You, know how to get things done in there, right?"

"Yes, Dean, I am aware of the mechanics behind urinating."

Thank God for small favors. Dean snorted at Castiel's turn of phrase, "Good, 'cause that would've been awkward." Really awkward. No one should have to potty train a full-grown man, particularly one they may or may not have inappropriate feelings for. "Don't have too much fun in there and yell if you need help. The rest of us'll be waiting outside."

Pulling away from the door, Dean grinned down at Claire. "Seems like your dad's doing just fine. Do you have to go too?"

The little girl shook her head. "No, I'm okay." It must be an angel thing because otherwise she had a bladder of steel.

"Do you want anything in the store? 'Cause if you do, you'll have to go outside and beg Sam for some cash."

"No. I'm not hungry." If this was because she was turning into an angel, Claire was going to become one of the lowest maintenance kids in history. When Sam had been going through _his_ transformation from human to…something not quite human he had eaten each meal like a starving wolf. Dean told Claire as much and she laughed saying that must be why Sam was so tall now.

Sam and all his tallness were waiting right where they left him, leaning on the hood of the Impala and staring down the road. When she spotted him Claire trotted right over to Sammy, hopping up onto the Impala beside him. Feeling indulgent, Dean didn't snap at her from jumping up on his baby, just moved to gently sit down on her other side.

Pulling his eyes away from the road, Sam sent Dean a wry smile, "So, is Cas good in there?"

"Yup, he seems to have everything under control."

"Good."

There was a moment's pause and Dean was just beginning to enjoy the fell of the warm wind on his face when a soft voice broke through. "Dean?"

Dean's eyes bounced from his brother down to Claire. She had stilled, a focused expression that reminded Dean so much of Cas it was scary on her face. "What's wrong?"

"Something," Claire swallowed and sunk a little bit further between Dean and Sam as if she were trying to use them as shields, "something feels weird out here now."

Dean met Sam's eyes, their gaze breaking as Sam's gaze returned to the road and Dean looked back down at Claire. "What do you mean? Weird how?"

"I don't know. It's just...I don't like it. It feels bad."

Son of a bitch. "Sam, go get Cas." Grabbing Claire's hand, Dean pulled her off the hood and led her over to the passenger seat of the car. "Come one Claire, let's you and me get the car started."

It took Sam less than a minute to walk out with Cas at his side and less than thirty seconds for Sam to jump into the passenger's seat and Castiel to jump in the back. Castiel looked slightly breathless, his blue eyes wide, "Sam said there's a problem. What's wrong?"

Dean shook his head. "I don't know and I don't want to know. We're getting the hell out of here before—"

"—Daddy…"

Dean's words caught in his throat at Claire's whisper. She was scared. Swallowing he steeled himself then turned around to look at her only to find Claire's own gaze locked on something outside. "…_Daddy_…"

Castiel's jaw tightened and stared at the spot Claire was looking at. "What is it?"

"Daddy," Her voice hitched, "_Daddy_, it's, it's coming closer!"

"Claire, _what do you see_?"

By now it was clear that only Claire could see what was out there, the other three of them left to desperately scan the area. With a whimper she crawled into Castiel's lap, "It's a big, big dog. There are more of them now! They're right there, Daddy, can't you see them?"

Dean watched with a tightening heart as Cas's face went pale. "Dean, drive. As fast as you can."

He didn't need to be told twice. Sam reached out to grip the dashboard as Dean peeled out of the gas station. Any thought of getting stopped by the cops suddenly wasn't important as a bone chilling howl pierced the air. "What the hell was that?"

Cas's face was still white as he fumbled to buckle Claire's seat belt. "Hellhounds. How many are there, Claire?"

The young girl whimpered, still trying to hold onto Castiel even as he struggled with their belts. "I dunno! Four maybe?"

"Jesus Christ, _Dean_!" Sam grit his teeth as Dean swerved sharply back onto the highway.

"Seat belts on everyone! And for fuck's sake someone tell me what we're dealing with!"

Sam sucked in a breath, "Hellhounds are like Cujo on steroids! They're bad news, Dean!"

"Yeah, well I'd like to see them catch up with us at these speeds!"

The words were barely out of his mouth when something heavy slammed into the side of the Impala, sending her squealing into the other lane. Claire let out a scream and Dean heard a deep bark and the snapping of jaws as he forced them back on course. "Dammit! Cas, how fast can hellhounds run?"

"Apparently fast enough!"

"Fuck!" Dean gripped the wheel so hard his knuckles turned white as another hellhound suddenly threw itself against the driver's side of the car, long claw marks ripping through the metal of the Impala's paneling. "What the hell are we supposed to do?"

"We need to lose them!"

The back window shattered and Dean almost lost control of the car as Cas pulled Claire down to avoid the deadly invisible jaws snapping at them, the gut-wrenching growls and snarls enough to make his heart stop. Dean had never been this scared in his life. "How am I gonna lose them?"

"I, I don't know!" Sam gripped his seat as he tried to think, think of anything at all that could help, "Salt, holy water—"

"—Iron!" Cas's voice cut in through the sound of snarls and barks, "Iron will also deflect demons, including hellhounds!"

"Where the fuck am I supposed to find iron? Son of a bitch!" Dean threw his whole body into keeping the car on the road as he watched a piece of the Impala's bumper get torn off in the side mirror, the discarded piece of metal sparking across the asphalt as it fell to the wayside.

"Railroad tracks!"

"What?"

Sam swallowed and jerked away from his window as he heard a sharp, vicious bark near his ear. "Railroad tracks! They might be made of iron! There's a sign coming up for railroad tracks, if we can make it, maybe it'll work!"

Realizing he'd stopped breathing, Dean sucked in a sharp gasp of air. Railroad, he could make it to the railroad tracks. He had just been joking about that 'screw God' thing. If God was out there, please God, let them make it to those damned railroad tracks.

Dean put all his attention on those tracks, on just reaching those railroad tracks. Tracks, tracks, where the hell were the—There! "Hang on!"

Pushing the gas pedal down as far as it could go, Dean braced himself, Sam doing the same next to him. Just when the speedometer hit one thirty and the railroad tracks were less than fifty yards away there was a loud pop like the sound of a gunshot and the steering wheel jerked free from Dean's hand. Looking at the mirror he saw a flash of black rubber fly off and realized that the hounds had taken out his back tires just as the Impala was sent into a wild tail-spin.

There was a violent jolt as they crossed over the tracks and it was all Dean could do was hold on. Hold on as the world flashed in front of his windshield, blue sky, black asphalt, green grass, then _bam!_ Everything went black.

OoOoOo

Sam regained consciousness slowly, his ears still ringing from the impact amongst a deafening silence. The world smelled like gasoline, smoke, and blood. Forcing his eyes open, his vision swam for a moment or two before the world slowly began to right itself and the rest of his senses caught up with him.

He was hanging forward, the seatbelt straining across his chest the only thing keeping him from falling into the windshield. His nose hurt, like he had bumped it, and his arms…and his legs…he began to feel them again, his fingers flexing as he moved them up to grab onto the seatbelt. As his vision finally refocused, he realized the whole car seemed to be tipped slightly onto its side, which made sense. The last thing he remembered was the Impala going nose first into a ditch. But he didn't hear any hellhounds…The railroad tracks must've worked after all.

Hearing a small movement behind him, Sam twisted his head, ignoring the small ache that followed the motion. In the back seat Claire blinked her wide blue eyes open and Cas was dazedly inspecting her for damage. Like Sam though, the two seemed mostly unhurt.

When Cas finally felt Sam's gaze, he turned to look at him instead, apparently satisfied that his daughter hadn't come to any real harm. "Sam…"

"…Hey Cas. You two alright?" Sam was hopeful that he already knew the answer but he wanted to hear it from the angel.

"We were not seriously injured." Before Sam could feel any relief at the other's words, Cas's gaze seemed to sharpen and his blue eyes turned to the driver's seat. "But Dean—"

Sam tore his attention away from Castiel and immediately looked towards his brother, focus returning fully to his rattled brain as he saw Dean slumped over the steering wheel. His face was turned away from Sam, his arms resting limply in his lap.

"Dean?" When there was no response Sam's heart quickening in his chest, "Dean? Hey Dean!"

Sam could hear Castiel fumble to unlatch his seatbelt but already had his own undone and leaned across the front seat. As gently as his growing worry allowed, Sam reached out a hand and touched his brother's shoulder, "Dean, come on man!"

There was absolutely no response. Worse than that, the slight touch had caused something to drip down from Dean's face down onto his jeans: a thick, red droplet of blood. Dean was bleeding. He was bleeding and unresponsive.

Sam swore under his breath and forced the passenger's side door open, having to kick at the bent metal twice before it finally popped open. A surge of fear gave him the energy to sprint around to the driver's side, not even bothering to glance down at the thin trail of smoke snaking up from underneath the Impala's mangled hood.

Wrenching Dean's door open, Sam ignored the shower of glass that rained down from the broken window. "_Dean!_"

It was worse than Sam had feared. Dean's face, clearly visible from this angle, was washed in blood, the red streaming from a nasty gash across his forehead, a split lip, and his nose that looked like it might have been broken on impact. He had lacerations covering most of his left arm and thigh, probably caused by the glass shattering on the windshield. One of his legs was bent at an unnatural angle, the bone obviously broken, the limb half trapped underneath the crushed dashboard. Worse still was the pallor of Dean's skin, his normal tan now paled to a deathly white. It looked like—

"Dean, please, don't be…" Sam distantly heard Cas kicking out his own door as he reached forward and cautiously, fearfully, pressed his fingers to Dean's throat. Thank God. There was a pulse! It was there but it was growing faint, fainter even as Sam held his fingers there. Suddenly Sam realized why his brother was fading. "Cas! Cas, he's not breathing!"

Instantly Castiel was at Sam's side, the angel's face grim but determined as in one swift move he snapped Dean's seat belt, lifted his brother from his seat, and spread him out on the grassy embankment less than a foot away from the wreckage. Sam didn't even have the time to warn Cas about checking for neck or back injuries before Cas was leaning down over Dean, the angel attempting CPR, pressing his lips to his older brother's in a desperately human attempt to save his life. Sam crouched down next to them, forced to watch with his heart in his throat as Cas pulled his lips away from Dean's to pump his chest, trying to get air back into his lungs.

"Is it working?" Sam's voice sounding strange even to his own ears and he knew it wasn't because of the impact. His brother was dying and there was nothing he could do but watch. Please God, not like this. Sam prayed every single day but never this hard. Not for Jess, not for himself, but for Dean he was willing to do anything, just please, don't take him, not like this.

"He's still not breathing! Sam, call 911!"

Jerking his head down in a half-nod, Sam fumbled for his phone as a soft, cautious voice drifted from the backseat. "Daddy, what's wrong? Is Dean okay?"

Cas had his lips pressed back against Dean's so Sam answered as he tried to remember which pocket he kept his phone in. "Stay in your seat, Claire!"

"What happened?"

What _had_ happened? Why had Dean been the only one to come out so damaged when he, Cas, and Claire had—Sam let out a breath. Right. Of course. It took more than a mere car crash to badly injure an angel, a Nephilim, or a half-demon, even those without their full power, but Dean was _human_. Sam always forgot—by looking at Dean, it was hard to remember—but despite how strong Dean appeared, no matter his bravado, he was only human. And right now he was paying the price for it.

Fingers finally finding his phone, Sam slid it out of his jeans but before he could even press 9 he was stopped by a sharp gasp beside him. Claire had climbed out without him noticing, the seven year old's eyes locked on Dean's broken body. "No, Claire, go back inside!"

"_Dean_!"

Sam didn't even have the time to grab her before she was running over to his brother's side. Cas sat back on his heels, his eyes dark with fear, and did nothing to push his daughter away as she kneeled over Dean's body. Sam wanted to yell at him, tell him she was too young for this, to be seeing this but then Claire lowered her hands and pressed them against Dean's chest.

The reaction was instantaneous, Dean's body arcing up like he had been zapped by a defibrillator with a blinding white spark. When the light faded, Sam felt his breath catch in his throat. Some of Dean's wounds had partially healed from the Nephilim's touch. Before he could really even take stock of all the changes, Claire pressed her hands back to Dean's chest.

There was another sharp, quick explosion of light, Dean's body arched up again, but this time a heavy gasp filled the air as Dean came back to life. As soon as his back hit the ground Dean began to cough and choke and, with his own heart pounding in his chest, Sam rolled him over with a shaking hand, trying to help his brother get air back into his lungs.

A tear slid down Sam's cheek as he ran his palm across Dean's shoulders, "Dean! Breathe, Dean!" Dean's body shuddered under his fingertips before his eyes rolled back and he fell back unconscious. "Stay with us, Dean. Just hang on!"


	6. Chapter 6

Alright, this chapter's almost out on time! Whoo! *does a happy dance* I'm on my road trip now (if you're curious about where I've been, where I'm going, and what I've been up to, I should have a Livejournal post ready to go soon). As always, big thanks need to go out to everyone who reviewed for the last chapter: HumanElement, keiko-uchiha, Afgncaap8, egyptian1995, DeansMuse, charmed-chan, ChaosGarden, supreme dramon, MesserMessa, and indigoskies7! This chapter's a little shorter than some of the others, but hopefully just as good. ^_^

O

* * *

><p>Chapter 6<p>

* * *

><p>The sound of crunching metal, a sharp flare of pain followed by a bone-deep numbness. Dean could almost feel himself drifting off, drifting under…He welcomed the sensation as the pain began to fade away.<p>

Then a white hot burst of _something_ exploded in Dean's body. It felt like he was hit by a bolt of lightning, the sharp searing pain ripping him apart—no, soldering him back together. Suddenly he had to breathe, _had_ to get air back into his lungs, the pain only growing worse as his lungs reluctantly expanded. He could hear, hear Sam calling his name but it just hurt too much, everything _hurt_.

Somewhere in the back of his mind he thought he heard Sam saying something about calling someone, someone to help, but Dean couldn't focus on anything anymore. Sam was okay, he would take care of things. Dean felt himself beginning to fade away and gratefully let the numbness in.

OoOoOo

Sam sat down heavily in the beat-up armchair pulled close to the side of Dean's bed and rested his chin in his hands. His brother was still asleep, or more appropriately unconscious but he was finally showing signs of waking. After Claire did whatever she did to him, Dean had virtually been healed but he obviously wasn't completely better since it had been sixty five hours and thirty two minutes since he had last open his eyes.

Not that Sam was keeping track.

Heaving a breath, Sam let his own eyes close and ran his hands over his face. Cas had said that Dean was physically healed but that his soul itself was still hurting from his near death—okay, full-death experience. What's worse is that the angel wasn't even sure what Claire did and Claire didn't even know herself so Cas wasn't one hundred percent certain Dean would _ever_ wake up. The angel was unfortunately brutally honest and while part of Sam was thankful for it, the rest of him wished that Cas would develop a better bedside manner.

Sam leaned back in the seat, wincing slightly as the wood squeaked plaintively under him. That sound though reminded him that at least one thing in this giant clusterfuck had gone right. After Claire brought Dean back, Sam and Cas had mutually agreed that calling an ambulance would be a bad idea, mostly because they weren't sure medicine would really do anything to help. There was also the issue that if they'd call an ambulance they'd have to explain to the EMTs what happened and that didn't sound very productive either.

They still needed a place to hide until Dean recovered though so Sam had been forced to dig deep into his contacts list to find someone who could help them. Having moved away from the Midwest a little over four years ago there weren't many people who Sam still knew locally but then he had remembered an old friend of his parents. More specifically his father's friend, an old hunting buddy who lived less than five hours away. Sam remembered old Bobby Singer from when he and Dean were kids. From what he could remember, Bobby was a nice enough guy who kept his cool, just the type who might just pick up John Winchester's stranded sons and their two supernatural tagalongs.

The gamble had paid off. Sam had called Bobby up and after taking a few minutes to explain exactly who he was, Bobby agreed to come get them at their crash site. Apparently he owned a salvage business and even had a tow truck to drag the wrecked Impala back with them which Sam was eternally grateful for. If Dean ever woke up he would've killed Sam if he had hadn't brought that car with them.

They were at Bobby's place now, a run-down house in the middle of a junkyard in the South Dakotan countryside. Dean was downstairs in an eerie part of the basement that Bobby called the "panic room". It turned out Bobby had extensive knowledge of all things inhuman and was remarkably calm about the whole Dean being in a coma thing. Sam himself hadn't slept since the crash, too worried about Dean and too worried about those hellhounds following their tracks. Bobby swore up and down that there was no way in Hell those dogs would be able to make it onto his property but Sam wasn't so sure. He had seen what they could do first-hand.

Sam was brought out of his thoughts by the sound of someone walking around upstairs. It wouldn't have been that noteworthy except for the fact that Bobby was out getting groceries, Cas and Claire had gone up for a nap less than two hours ago, and no one else was home except for them.

With one more glance at Dean, Sam pushed himself up onto his feet and made his way toward the stairs. Trudging up the wooden steps, he shoved the door that led up to the main part of the house open and peeked inside.

What he saw stopped him in his tracks. Cas was back on the ground floor, his trench coat bundled under one arm and Claire's hand tucked into the other, and he was walking toward the front door with a stride way too purposeful for him to be just taking a stroll outside.

It took Sam just a second to process what was happening but when he did he lunged through the doorframe, moving so fast he almost tripped over his own feet. "Wait, Cas!" Claire looked up at her father and Castiel froze, his fingers inches away from the doorknob but didn't say anything, didn't even turned around, so Sam tried again. "You can't just walk out."

Finally he got a reaction. Castiel's shoulders slumped and he glanced half-heartedly over his shoulder. When he spoke, his voice was low, pleading. "Please, Sam. I think I've done enough. I can no longer stand by and watch you and Dean endanger yourselves for us." Sam opened his mouth to argue but Cas beat him to it, his blue eyes narrowing. "I'm not strong enough to keep you safe. I couldn't even heal Dean. If Claire's abilities had not been sparked by her distress Dean would be—would be much worse off than he is now."

Sam shook his head. "He's doing this because he _wants_ to, so am I. Do you know how much it'd hurt him if you and Claire weren't here when he wakes up?"

Letting out a short sigh, Cas begrudgingly urged Claire away. The girl glanced confusedly between Sam and Castiel but one more nod from her father sent her scampering back up the stairs. Once he was sure Claire would be unable to hear, Castiel started again. "You don't understand, Sam. I can't—I've already had to watch one human I've cared about pass from this world. This is all I can do to ensure it won't happen again."

Sam faltered for a moment but didn't let up. He couldn't let this happen. "So you're afraid of people leaving you, don't you think Dean's the same? Dean's had abandonment issues since, since forever. I knew it and I still left for school but then he at least had Ellen, Jo, and the Roadhouse. Now he doesn't have any of that. Look at everything he's already given up for you. You mean something to him! You mean a lot to him. So just, stick around, alright? Please."

Sam saw something soften in the angel's eyes and just hoped that he had said enough to convince him. "At least until he wakes up so you can talk to him. Please, Cas."

OoOoOo

Dean came back to himself slowly, his consciousness resurfacing as if it had been buried in ten feet of quicksand. There was a dull pain in his chest, like all his ribs had been bruised and his nerve endings tingled in that pins-and-needles way. Awake enough now to realize that he should be seeing, should be smelling and hearing but he wasn't, Dean struggled to break out of whatever had a hold on him.

The last thing he remembered was crashing and even that was a jumbled memory of color and sound. Now he was…lying down? Shouldn't he be sitting up in the driver's seat? And if he was here, where was Sammy? And Cas and Claire?

Why wasn't he dead?

Feeling like he had just climbed Mount Everest, Dean finally mustered up the strength to open his eyes. Light faded in and out above him and it took him a long moment to realize that he was inside, lying under a large fan in the ceiling. A low grunt escaped his lips as he tried to sit up, the noise immediately causing something next to him to move closer to him that Dean wasn't able to identify until Sam spoke.

"Dean! You're awake!"

"Ugh…Sammy…?" Dean grimaced as he pushed himself up onto his elbows. "…I either had a really awesome night or a god-awful one."

Sam put a hand on his back, helping to hold him up. "You had a _reall_y bad night Dean. And actually a couple of really bad days."

Dean's brow bunched up as he tried to focus on what his brother was saying. "…Days?"

He heard Sam sigh. "It's Friday, Dean. You've basically been in a coma for the last three days."

"…Why does everything hurt?"

"What do you remember?"

"We were heading for New York. Bon Jovi was on the radio and Cas had to take a piss. We stopped and then…those Hell dog things were chasing us and we crashed."

"You were, uh, injured in the crash."

Dean turned his head to look at Sammy after hearing something strange in his voice. He found Sam staring right back at him. "How bad?"

"Bad." Sam's brow was furrowed, the memory obviously still fresh in his mind. "You probably wouldn't have made it but Claire actually stepped in and healed you. Your body should be fine but apparently your psyche took one hell of a hit."

"Oh." That explained a lot.

"Yeah. Anyway, I had to call up an old friend of Dad's to come and get us. Bobby Singer, remember him?"

Dean nodded, "Yeah. Good guy."

Sam gave him a weak smile. "And he knows his stuff too. He apparently has this place demon proofed so we can stay as long as we need for you to get better."

"And Cas and Claire? They okay?"

"Yeah, they're good. You're the only one who got badly hurt, Dean." Dean hesitated a minute but Sam seemed to already know what was on his mind. "You want me to get Castiel?"

Dean frowned but couldn't deny that he didn't want to make sure that the angel was okay with his own eyes. And if he had really been out for three days they probably had some things to talk about. "Yeah, that'd be great, Sammy."

Sam nodded and it was pretty obvious that he had known what Dean was going to say before he had even asked. "Alright, I'll send him down."

As Sam pulled away to go find Cas, Dean was forced back down onto his back without his brother's hand to support him. His eyelids felt like lead so he let them close, forcing them open again only when he heard footsteps hurrying over to wherever he was spread out.

Rolling his head to the side he saw Cas jogging into the room, his footsteps slowing as the angel saw Dean's eyes were on him. Dean tried to smile but was pretty sure it came out as more of a grimace. "Hey, Cas. Good to see at least the rest of us are up on their feet."

"Dean. You're awake."

"Everyone seems so surprised."

Cas kept walking until he was at Dean's bedside, his blue eyes full of emotions Dean couldn't name as their gazes met. "We were not sure that you would. I…must apologize, Dean, for everything I have put you through. You had no obligation to help myself or Claire and yet you nearly lost your life trying to protect ours. If I had my full powers it would be one thing but now, without them, it's an entirely different matter."

Dean's mind buzzed as he pushed himself back up to his elbows, his arms just enough to keep him upright. "Whoa, slow down there, Cas. Let's just—"

"Please, let me finish, Dean." Dean shut his mouth as Castiel nodded, swallowed, then went on. "I feel I must tell you, I had the full intention of leaving last night with Claire." Feeling his heart catch in his throat, Dean wouldn't even have been able to interrupt this time if he had wanted to and Castiel just kept on talking. "I was at the front door when Sam stopped me. He made me promise that I would at least speak to you before leaving again."

"So…you're still going to leave?"

Castiel's eyes widened a fraction before looking down at his feet. "It still seems like the correct choice. Dean, my continued presence here only ensures that you'll kept being put in harm's way. If Claire and I leave, you and Sam won't have to worry any longer about demons, angels, or anything trying else trying to harm you."

Closing his eyes, Dean tried to think of something to say but his brain just wouldn't work fast enough. "...I know me being laid out for three days has probably cost you some time. If you and Claire need to head out, I'd get it, Cas."

Cas's chin snapped back up and his eyes were back on Dean's, "That isn't why I—!" His voice waivered for a moment and he started again. "Dean, you are not holding me back. Never think that you are. It's simply a matter of your personal safety."

Dean felt his whole body relax. "Well, screw that. Cas, if that's all you're worried about, you're flat outta luck. I don't give a rat's ass if I get hurt or not, so if that's your only excuse you're just going to have to put up with me 'cause I'm not going anywhere. You and Claire are worth it."

At Dean's words, Cas seemed to deflate. He all but fell into the chair next to Dean's bed then, much to Dean's surprise, reached forward and cupped Dean's face in his hands. Momentarily forgetting to breathe, Dean froze as Cas came in close, hands still on the side of Dean's face as he leaned their foreheads together. It was weird and should've been way too intimate for Dean's liking but, to his surprise, it was just a bit more comforting than overwhelming so he didn't do anything to push the angel away.

Their noses bumped as Cas tilted his head and if Dean didn't know any better he'd think that they were about to kiss. Wasn't hard to imagine with their lips less than three inches apart. Again, Dean didn't mind nearly as much as he should've.

From this distance, Dean could see every detail of the angel's face and the urge to close the gap between them grew stronger as Castiel spoke, his voice a low hum. "Human beings are miraculous creatures. Our Father's most perfect creation."

Dean wet his lips. "I don't know about that…I definitely see room for improvement."

Cas's blue gaze slowly passed over his face, lingering for a few seconds on his lips before traveling to his eyes. Dean felt like he was naked under the angel's stare; it felt like Castiel was looking not just at him but _into_ him. "That is because you do not have my perspective."

From this angle, Dean didn't know what Cas thought he was seeing but it couldn't be a better view than Dean's. His little snort of disbelief made the edges of Cas's mouth curl up into a small smile. "I have grown very fond of you, Dean Winchester. Thank you for choosing to continue with us. I honestly can say that I do not know how Claire and I would carry on without you and your brother's assistance."

Speaking of Sam…"Where'd Sammy disappear to anyway?"

"He is upstairs playing with Claire. He said that he wanted us to have some 'time alone'. Should I go get him?"

"Mm, nah…He doesn't play around enough these days, it's probably doing him some good." And Dean would have to thank Sam for that "alone time" with Cas later.

Castiel's lip quirked up a bit more and seeing that smile did Dean and his already strained inhibitions in. Fuck it. Apparently he had almost died and Sam was giving him the time he needed now; he wasn't going to let this one pass him by. "Hey Cas?"

"What is it?"

"What would you do if I kissed you right now?"

The angel observed him carefully for a moment, his eyes flickering back down to Dean's lips. "…I'd assume that it was an action brought on by temporary confusion from your injuries. And, considering your condition and what has happened, I would, probably, humor you and allow it."

Dean tilted his chin up so that their lips almost brushed as they spoke. "Yeah?"

"Yes."

"Good." Finally, finally the space between them disappeared as Dean closed his eyes, tilted his head, and pressed his mouth to the angel's. Castiel's lips were dry and chapped, but full and pressed just right against Dean's own. Jesus, he had been wrong. The attraction was definitely mutual.

Cas was hesitant and a little clumsy at first, clearly out of practice, but when Dean's tongue snuck out and licked imploringly at Cas's bottom lip the angel suddenly came to life and began to kiss Dean like a drowning man chasing oxygen. Dean let out a grunt but didn't break away, just let Castiel press him back against his bed, shivers running up and down his spine as their tongues brushed, loving how Cas matched his every move and tried to return it two-fold.

They were moving dangerously fast but, never one to turn down a chance like this, Dean was ready to go wherever Castiel wanted to take this. His muscles were still sore and his lungs still hurt, but, damn, if Cas could kiss this well Dean's arousal shot through the roof thinking about how'd he be at other things.

A throat clearing across the room cut all of that short, Cas jerking away from Dean's lips so fast it made Dean's head spin. "Mr. Singer!"

"Sorry. Didn't know I was interrupting something, otherwise I woulda let you alone."

At the sound of the new voice Dean pushed himself back up for a third time to find an older man with a beard and a baseball cap eyeing him and Cas like he couldn't decide if he should be amused or disgusted. Pretending like he wasn't just swapping spit with an angel, Dean cleared his throat. "You must be Bobby."

The man nodded and seemed to deem it safe to walk closer. Now that he got a good look at him, Dean definitely recognized his Dad's old friend. He hadn't seen Bobby for over a decade but the fleeting memories he did have of the other were good ones. "That's right. Nice to see you up. We were starting to get worried about you." Dean's gaze flashed to Cas. "Sam's been telling me what happened. Only an idgit would tangle with a hellhound but your quick thinking probably saved all of your lives."

"Thanks, I think. And Sam's been telling _me_ that you're letting us crash here for a while so, thanks for that too. I know we're probably not the best houseguests."

Bobby huffed out a short laugh. "No, you're not. But you ain't the worst I've had either."

"I can't help but notice that you seem to be taking all of this real easy." Dean hadn't meant it to come out sounding so suspicious but the way things had been going for them so far he wasn't used to other people doing them any favors.

"I've had a couple of days now to adjust. Besides, there was a point where your Dad was like a brother to me. The least I can do is help out his kids when they need a place to stay for a while."

Bobby trailed off, all three of them looking up as they heard footsteps coming down the stairs toward them. A second later Sam stuck his head in the door. "Hey, Claire's getting hungry so I wanted to know how much food I should make for dinner."

Before he knew it all eyes had turned to Dean. Honestly, his stomach was still feeling a little queasy but he already knew what they wanted to hear. "I could eat." It would probably do him some good to get something down anyway if he really had been out for three whole days.

Sam's face predictably brightened up. "Alright, I'll get something started."

Before Sammy could bound back up the stairs, Bobby stopped him with a quick sigh, "Hold on there, boy, I'll come with you so you just wait. Don't need anyone settin' my kitchen on fire." Sam's smile melted down into what Dean could only call a pout. Dean was about to laugh but Bobby's next words stopped the chuckle cold in his throat. "By the way, Sam, you could'a warned me about interrupting them when the two of 'em were 'busy'."

"What are you—? Oh." The implications of Bobby's words sunk in and Sam's eyes were back on Dean as he stammered. "Huh, well, I uh." He tilted his head in a very Cas-ish way and Dean already hated the way his lips were twitching up into a smirk. "What were you guys doing when Bobby came down?"

"Nothing."

"Kissing."

Dean closed his eyes at his and Cas's simultaneous answers. He was going to have to teach Cas how to lie one of these days. Meanwhile Sam tried and failed to smother a shit-eating grin. "Sorry, Bobby." Even though he was talking to the older man, his gaze was still on Dean, "I guess I should've given you a head's up after all."

Sensing that something was going on, Bobby looked from Sam then back to Dean, "This a new development?"

"Yes."

"No."

Dean glared at Sam while Cas shifted awkwardly beside him. The angel cleared his throat, "If it is going to present an issue, I'm sure Dean and I can—"

Bobby shook his head before Cas could even finish. "It doesn't make a lick of difference to me when you two do, I just don't want to make a habit of walking into it. Now unless you want to turn this into a counseling session I think it's a good time for me and Sam to get some food started. You two come on up when you're ready."

Rolling his eyes, Dean shooed them away with a wave of his hand. Castiel waited until the two men were all the way up the stairs before he dared to move again, releasing a short sigh before he sat down on the edge of Dean's bed. Dean watched with wary optimism, unsure what the angel was thinking and too afraid to ask. So now Sam and Bobby both knew about the, the _whatever_ that was going on between them. It put him on edge but at the same time they both seemed okay with it. Now he just had to figure out if Cas was okay with it.

"You alright, Cas?"

Castiel looked up at him confusedly. "Why wouldn't I be alright? You are the one who is injured."

"No, I mean are you alright with _this_."

Understanding sparked in Castiel's eyes as Dean waved his hand between them and his expression softened. "Yes, Dean, I am alright with this. Admittedly things are progressing between us faster than I could have predicted but I do not resent my feelings for you. You are a good man with many redeeming qualities, one of which is the fact that you would risk your life for a hunted creature like myself and their daughter."

Something in Dean's mind balked at the word "creature" even though he himself would've used the same word to describe Cas a few weeks ago. "You don't give yourself enough credit."

The rouge angel paused then with a shrug leaned back over Dean's body and pressed his lips lightly to Dean's forehead. "I suppose we're both guilty of that then." Pulling away just enough for their eyes to meet, Dean was fairly sure Cas was going to go in for another kiss but, after a long moment, let out a small sigh and sat up. "We should probably get upstairs and join the others."

"I dunno. Maybe." Dean was still eyeing Castiel's lips but he couldn't blame himself for wanting more. It had been months since he'd had any real intimate contact with anyone and he had been starting to feel like a monk. "Maybe they can just bring some food down here for us instead."

A teasing glint flickered in Cas's eyes. "Only if you want Claire to join us. She will undoubtedly want to see you as soon as she learns you have woken up."

"Well I guess we might as well go upstairs then, huh?"

"That would be for the best." Noticing that Dean was trying to push himself up again, Castiel swooped in, quickly wrapping on of his arms around Dean's back and using his other to pull Dean's arm over his shoulders. Dean started protesting but Cas quickly cut him off, "Allow me to help you. I may no longer have my angelic strength but I think you'll find I am still perfectly adequate in human terms."

Dean grimaced as Castiel helped lift his body up off of the bed and onto his feet. The aches running through his body about doubled as his weight shifted and he was sure that without Cas there his knees probably would've buckled and he would've hit the ground. "I don't doubt it. The problem here is that _I'm_ not."

"You're still healing, Dean. It will probably take another few days for you to fully regain your own strength. Until then we will remain here so you have a safe place to recover."

If there was one thing Dean hated worse than being hurt it was the recovering part where you had to sit on your ass all day. Just the idea of laying on that bed for more than eight hours a day made him a little stir-crazy. "Sounds _great_."

OoOoOo

It had taken another twelve hours for Dean to convince Sam, Bobby, and Cas that he was healthy enough to walk around on his own and another three after that before he actually gathered up the strength to do so. He was pretty sure that all three of them had finally caved just because they were tired of listening to his bitch about everything. Claire was overjoyed to see him stumbling around on his own, not yet old enough to realize that just because he could doesn't mean he should.

Seeing the little girl again was like a breath of fresh air, though that air was knocked out of him as soon as he glanced out a window and saw the Impala, his baby, sitting in a crumpled wreck in the driveway. That one moment led to him spending the rest of the afternoon elbow deep in motor grease as he labored to put her back together piece by piece. Thank God Bobby owned a salvage yard because what Dean wasn't able to save he was able to hunt down from one of the other couple dozen cars Bobby had on his property.

Sam came outside once to force some water down his throat—the bastard wouldn't let him have any beer—and try to convince Dean to come back inside and rest but Dean didn't even bother listening. His body was screaming at him to take it easy too but working on the Impala was exactly what the rest of him needed to get better.

When Dean threw himself right back into his work the next day, Sam seemed to give in and stuck around to help with what he could. Castiel and Claire joined them a few hours later, Cas watching from the porch as Claire sat next to her father with her nose buried in one of Bobby's dusty books. The only things Dean would really stop for were food, drink, and stealing kisses from Castiel when he and the angel found themselves alone.

Working side by side with his brother, Dean actually made some pretty impressive progress and four days after he had woken up not only was he mostly healed but so was the Impala. Everyone else was inside at the moment, deep in some sort of conference with Bobby about what they were going to do next, leaving Dean a moment alone to finish up the final touches to the car. The new coat of paint he had given her had just finished drying and he was just getting ready to put a new coat of wax on when the front door to Bobby's place opened and Claire slipped out.

Dean paused his work just enough to offer her a small smile. "How's it going in there?"

Shrugging and again looking much older than her actual age, Claire came over to watch him work. "They say that we will probably leave tomorrow morning for New York."

He could definitely have the Impala back in working order by then. "Sounds good to me."

Claire stood next to him in silence for another few minutes so Dean began to explain what he was doing. She seemed to absorb all the information like a sponge so Dean flipped up the hood and started on how an engine worked. He had just started to go through what he had repaired when something Claire said made him stop.

"And see that piece there? I had to pull it from another Chevy two rows down from here. Almost tore my hands up trying to get it, but it's perfect for the job."

"Uncle Sammy said—"

Whoa, what? Dean stood up and nearly banged his head on the Impala's hood. "'Uncle Sammy'? Just how long was I out for?"

Claire looked up at him, her blue eyes wide. "Just a few days. Daddy says that it was the shock that kept you asleep." Her gaze fell down to her shoes, guilt covering her face. "I'm sorry if I hurt you, Dean. I didn't mean to."

Reaching out, Dean did his best to reassure her as he ruffled her blond hair. "It's okay, sweetheart, you didn't hurt me. In fact, from what I hear you saved my life." As she snuck a peek back up at him he gave her a soft grin, "The only thing bothering me right now is why Sam gets to be your 'Uncle' and not me."

Claire seemed instantly relieved and returned his grin with a bright smile, "Silly, you can't be my uncle! You're already Dean."

"Huh?" Dean was going to ask her to clarify but the little girl had already started skipping back into the house. Shaking his head, Dean decided to just take it as a compliment and not think too much about it.

He didn't run into any more distractions for about another hour when Sam poked his head outside. "Hey Dean. You almost done?"

Straightening up, Dean wiped an arm across his forehead to try and get some of the sweat off. "Yeah, pretty much. You all come up with a plan yet?"

"Pretty much. Do you want to come in so we can talk it over?"

"Sure." It was probably a good idea, though if Sam, Cas, and Bobby all managed to agree on something Dean didn't think he'd have any problems with it.

Putting his tools away, Dean followed Sam back into the house to find everyone waiting for him in Bobby's study. "So what are our orders, General?"

Glancing up from the books and maps covering his desk, Bobby gave Dean a look before nodding over toward a couch where Cas and Claire were already sitting. "Why don't you take a seat so we can go over things, Lieutenant?"

Sam went to lean up against the wall behind Bobby, eyeing a map over the older man's shoulder. "Even though we've spent about a week here, we've decided that it would be best if we just keep making our way out towards New York."

Frowning, Dean looked towards Cas, "You think Gabriel's still out there?"

Cas tilted his head, "It is the most likely place for him to be. It's true by now he will have been there for nearly a month but if he really is there by Michael's request he is almost certainly still in the city. If Michael bothers to summon you it usually means that you have much to discuss and what humans consider a long meeting isn't necessarily the same as what angels consider a long meeting."

"Unfortunately whether or not Gabriel is actually there is just the beginning of our problems." A frown had appeared on Sam's face to match Dean's. "As soon as we exit Bobby's property we won't be shielded any longer from demons or the angels and we'll be back to being hunted. It's almost a sure thing that they know where we were headed so it's not too out there to think that they'll be lying in wait for us."

Dean leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, "Alright, so we're probably looking at another attack. I'm hoping you guys were in here talking so long because you were working out how we're going to survive the next one since we barely made it out the last time we ran into those hellhounds."

This was apparently where Bobby came in, the man standing up and walking over to a closet door as Dean finished his sentence. "Well I don't know jack shit about stoppin' angels, didn't even realize they actually existed until you lot called me. But if it's demons you're trying to keep away, I think I can help you boys out."

Dean and Cas stood up and they and Sam walked over as Bobby opened the closet up to reveal a small armory of weapons designed to stop things inhuman. Sam's mouth fell open in shock, looking like he wanted to same something but couldn't find the words, and all three of them watched as Bobby dug around and began to pass things back to them. "I got some holy water along with a rosary so you can make your own, a shotgun you can have, and an iron crowbar for when-if it comes down to blows."

Out of the corner of his eye, Dean saw Sam shy away from the iron but carefully accept the gallon jug of holy water. Cas took the rosary and the crowbar and Dean immediately went for the gun. "Wait, wait. Why the shotgun? I thought bullets don't work on demons."

Pulling out, Bobby shut the closet door, apparently not wanting anyone to go snooping around inside without his supervision. "They don't, which is why this one's packed with rock salt."

A grin split Dean's face. "Awesome." For the first time since this whole mess had started, Dean felt like he might actually be able to put up some sort of fight against the things hunting them all down. And that was a very good feeling.

Seeing his expression, Bobby let out a soft snort. "You're just like your Daddy, always goin' for the guns…"

Dean and Sam both glanced up at his words, the brothers sharing a look before Dean responded, "Dad did this?"

"Sure, every now and again."

Sam's brow furrowed. "I thought you and Dad were hunting buddies."

Bobby shrugged and headed back over towards his desk. "We were. We were just huntin' things a bit bigger than deer."

Trying to process this new piece of information, Dean tried to fit what Bobby was telling them into his mental picture of his Dad. Sure, their Dad had insisted that his sons knew how to defend themselves, how to fight, how to shoot a gun, he had taught them to watch out for the things in the shadows, but he had actually hunted the supernatural down? "How come we never knew any of this?"

"You were probably too young to notice. After your mother passed John really got into it, probably more than was healthy between you and me, but then he stopped when—" Bobby caught himself but as he glanced over at Sam it was pretty clear what he was about to say.

Sam's frown deepened before realization struck him and his eyes went wide. "Because of me?"

Bobby nodded slowly. "When you started showin' signs of taking after your grandpa I guess the lines between good and bad got a little too blurred for John's liking so he pulled back. Like I said, he had been getting too far into that life, starting to leave you boys behind, so it was probably the best thing that could've happened."

"Huh." Dean honestly didn't know what to say. He hadn't even realized their Dad had been pulling that far away from them but now, looking back, all those long nights and weekends, it made sense. The same thing seemed to be going through Sammy's head judging by his expression.

Seeing that they were both having some sort of belated epiphany, Bobby cleared his throat. "Anyway, the only other way I can think of to fight demons off is by painting a devil's trap somewhere on the Impala, like the trunk, so if you do find yourself face to face with one you can't beat, at the very least you'll be able to trap it." Dean had to fight off an immediate refusal of the offer, his instincts rebelling against the idea of painting anything on his newly-restored baby, but common sense won over and he gave in with a nod.

Until that point, Castiel had been virtually silent but after Dean gave his answer he spoke up. "Your mention of a devil's trap has reminded me of something. I believe I may have a solution as for how we may escape the angels' notice."

Hope welled up in Dean's chest and he glanced back at Cas. All these answers to their demon problem were great but they had only addressed half of their problem. Dean had been a little worried that they were going to have to take any angel's on without any sort of plan. "What is it?"

Castiel seemed unsettlingly hesitant about it all though, his gaze flickering up to Dean before settling on his chest. "I can inscribe your and Sam's bodies with sigils which will make it impossible for angels to locate you. It won't work for Claire or myself but hypothetically it should make the two of you essentially invisible to my brothers."

So far Dean didn't really see the problem. In fact, he was thinking of an entirely different issue like why hadn't Cas mentioned this at the start when he first knew that angels might be after them? "Why haven't we done this before?"

"It will take all the Grace I have left to complete, but," Castiel's gaze bounced back up to Dean's eyes, "given our recent experiences I think it will certainly be worth it."

Son of a bitch. Cas was bouncing Dean's words from a few days ago right back at him and hell if it didn't make him feel like a million bucks. Castiel was apparently willing to give up everything that still made him angelic to keep him and Sam safe. Dean couldn't even find it in himself to argue because he knew Cas was doing this for the same reason Dean had refused to let Cas go out on his own.

Dean hadn't meant for him and Cas to just stand there and stare into each other's eyes for a couple of minutes but that was apparently what happened since the next thing Dean knew Bobby was balking somewhere in the background, "Oh, God, you two aren't going to be like this the whole time you're here, are you?"

Blinking a couple of times, Dean turned to Bobby as Sam just shook his head. "Like what?"

Now Bobby was shaking his head. "Never mind."

Seriously, what the hell were they going on about? Any further questions died on Dean's lips though as Cas recaptured his attention. "There is another reason why I never suggested this before. Not only will it use the rest of my energy, but it has the potential to be rather painful for you."

"Oh."

Sam's brow pinched together, "How painful are we talking?"

Castiel's gaze bounced between both Winchesters before settling on Sam. "The pain will last less than a second but it will be rather acute as I will be inscribing the sigils directly onto your ribs. Sam, this is likely to be particularly uncomfortable for you. Your body will undoubtedly try to reject my attempts due to your demonic blood."

"Oh."

Sam's face had gone a little pale and just by looking at Cas you could tell this was the real reason why he had never suggested this option existed before. However it also seemed like this time the angel had carefully weighed the pros and cons and still thought like this was the way to go. Keeping his concern for his brother as wrapped up as possible, Dean put on his most convincing brave face and nodded to Castiel. "Then let's just get it over with. How do you need to do this, Cas?"

Letting out a little breath, Cas nodded as if in thanks before pulling himself up a little straighter. "I should be able to apply the sigils to both of you at once. Just in case the after-effects are more severe than I expect, the both of you should probably sit on the couch."

Dean started to obey but was stopped by a soft, hesitant word from Sam. "I, don't know about this. Is there any other way to block the angels from seeing us?"

"Unfortunately nothing that is within my power to perform."

"Come on, Sammy." Dean sat himself down on the couch then patted the cushion next to him. "Don't pussy out me now." He understood that Sam was probably a little anxious about having angelic mojo inside him but Dean was more worried that Sam would refuse to go through with this and would become an easy target later. Besides, if Cas thought this would do Sam any real damage he wouldn't even have brought it up. "However much this hurts, I can guarantee running into any other angel would be a lot less pleasant for you."

After spending a few seconds having a silent debate with himself working through all his options and consequences, Sam finally seemed to decide that he was right. Walking sullenly over to the couch, Sam dropped down next to Dean, his arms crossed over his chest. "If I start to…seizure or something, you can stop what you're doing, right?"

Cas had followed Sam over but remained standing in front of them. "Not really, no."

And Cas's total lack of bedside manners was showing again. Surprisingly it was Claire who came forward to redeem her father's brutal honesty. "It's okay, Uncle Sammy, I'll make sure nothing happens to you!"

Dropping his head back against the edge of the sofa, Sam closed his eyes, took a deep breath, then leaned forward again with a weak smile on his lips. "Thanks, Claire." Everyone else in the room knew there wasn't much of a chance of Claire being able to really help, but no one wanted to be the one to say anything.

Even Castiel seemed to be of the same opinion but he gave Claire an encouraging nod before taking one more step forward and pressing one hand against each Winchester's chest, his palm hot against Dean's skin even through the fabric of his shirt. Feeling Cas put a little extra pressure on his fingertips, Dean looked up to find the angel's eyes on him. "Are you ready? Dean? Sam?"

As said Sam's name, Castiel's gaze switched to his brother, trying to gauge his willingness to go through with this. Dean grit his teeth but nodded, Sam doing the same next to him. He felt Sam stiffen up next to him and knew his brother was buckling down for the worst. Forcing his own body to relax, Dean caught Cas's gaze again, willing himself to trust that the angel would make this as easy as possible for the both of them. "Go for it."

"Alright, hold on."

Seeing a glow beginning to grow under Cas's palm, Dean closed his eyes. Second later a prickling sensation began to bite at his skin followed by a sudden, sharp zing. Letting out a sharp gasp, some part of his brain heard Sammy let out a scream as it suddenly felt like thousands of little blades were carving down into his bones. The sensation was almost instantaneous but when Cas pulled his hand away a second later, Dean collapsed back onto the couch, his chest heaving as the pain settled.

"Balls! Someone get the kid a bucket!"

But apparently he had it easy. Opening his eyes, Dean's eyes widened further as he watched Sam throw up into a bucket Claire just managed to shove between his feet. Even from where he was sitting, Dean could tell that there had been blood in that vomit. Reaching out, Dean pulled Sammy's stupid hair out of his face, his own hands still shaking as Sam vomited again. When Sam came up for air Dean saw a glint of black and knew that Sam's eyes had changed too, his whole body fighting Cas's inscriptions. But he seemed to still be whole and relatively unscathed, and that was all that Dean could've asked for. "Just let it out, Sammy."

Dean jerked back as Sam apparently followed his advice and threw up a third time. There was less blood this time though, which Dean considered a success. Trying not to breathe through his nose, Dean looked up at Cas. "Did it work for him?"

"Yes. The inscriptions took. He should be fine in a few moments."

"Ugh…tell that to my stomach." Sitting up a bit straighter, Sam spit into the bucket before reaching up and brushing Dean's hands away with a grumbled "thanks". "I feel like I just got filleted."

Bobby just looked thankful no one had thrown up all over his hardwood floor. "Lucky for you then you got the whole night to sleep it off before you need to head off."

Castiel nodded his agreement. "It would be wise for all of us to get to bed early tonight. There is no telling what we will encounter tomorrow."

"Gotta love your optimism, Cas…"

OoOoOo

Despite Dean's sarcasm they all did manage to turn in early and wake up early the next morning. Sam was feeling much better and had actually recovered relatively quickly which Dean was thankful for. After all, he was the one who had been stuck with Sammy in a room all night and if Sam had kept him up moaning he would've been a little more than annoyed. Not that he still wasn't annoyed that he was sharing a room with Sam instead of, say, Castiel, but Bobby probably wouldn't have appreciated any funny business going on in his home anyway.

By the time the sun came up, Dean, Sam, Cas, and Claire were sitting in the Impala and only minutes away from heading out. Bobby was standing at the driver's side window, his hands in his pockets. "I never mentioned it, but you did a real good job fixin' up this car, Dean."

Dean grinned at the compliment. "Thanks, Bobby. I don't know shit about math or science, but hand me a wrench and I'm a freaking genius."

"Modest too, I see." When Dean's grin just grew wider, Bobby shook his head and leaned down so that he could talk to Sam and Cas too. "Listen, boys. I know someone who may be willing to help you. Last I heard from him, he'd moved to Chicago so it'd be on your way."

Dean scoffed, "I feel like we're part of the Underground Railroad or something."

Bobby's gaze turned into a glare. "You'd better be just as careful, because if you're caught by either the angels or the demons, they're gonna kill you on the spot."

He definitely didn't need the reminder. "Thanks, Bobby. You always know what to say."

"I'm telling you what you need to hear. Now you boys better call me when you get where you're going so I know you're alright." It was weird hearing such a request from a man who had practically been a stranger less than a week ago but weirder still that Dean didn't find it weird. Maybe it was because they had gone through a tough time together or maybe it was because he had been good friends with his Dad, but Dean already felt pretty attached to the aging man. He was definitely going to have to make some trips up to South Dakota after this.

Sam nodded at Bobby from the passenger's seat. "Sure thing. Who should we look up when we get to Chicago?"

"He goes by the name of Crowley. He's a little temperamental but tell him I sent you and he should help you out. He owes me." A moment passed before Bobby seemed to rethink his words. "But bring a bottle of scotch along with you, just in case."


	7. Chapter 7

Well…So I didn't get the chapter out as quickly as I wanted but I think I definitely made up for it in length (hopefully in content too). This, I believe, is officially the longest chapter I have yet written in my Fanfiction career, for no other reason save for that the chapter just wouldn't end. So I hope you enjoy. I'm back from my road-trip but now school has officially started; I wish I could predict how fast my next update will come but you can bet that if it isn't out in a week it won't be any longer than two. More love than you can imagine goes out to all those who reviewed the last chapter: supreme dramon, egyptian1995, Afgncaap8, DeansMuse, indigoskies7, keiko-uchiha, ramen-is-my-goddess, and HumanElement. You dudes rock!

O

* * *

><p>Chapter 7<p>

* * *

><p>Dean leaned back against the passenger's seat, watching the remnants of the sunset dip beneath the horizon. It was Sam's turn to drive and Dean was supposed to be using this time to sleep but so far that plan wasn't working out. So far they hadn't run into anything supernatural since they had left Bobby's but Dean wasn't ready to say that meant that they were in the clear yet. In fact, he was willing to bet the opposite was true. They hadn't seen any signs of anyone coming after them but a heavy feeling of danger hung in the air. It felt like the Impala had a big target spray painted on her roof and every evil and angelic thing from South Dakota to Illinois was joining the hunt.<p>

As they drove in the growing darkness, clouds settled heavily overhead, dark, heavy, and ominous. Looking up at them, Dean wasn't surprised when a white bolt of lightning suddenly streaked down from the clouds to the trees below, flashing bright both against the underside of the clouds and the highway. He had seen enough Midwestern summer storms to know when some dry lightning was brewing, though it didn't make it any less dramatic as another bolt of lightning snaked along the bottom of the clouds, not even striking the earth.

Sam seemed equally blasé about it, glancing up every now and again from the directions on his smartphone when there was a particularly blinding flash but otherwise keeping his head down. A quick into the back though showed that Cas and Claire were completely captivated by the light show. When Cas caught him looking he raised his brow, "It seems that Heaven disapproves of our journey."

Dean winced as a large, branching bolt stuck a radio tower about half a mile ahead of them, sparks flying as the volts slammed into the metal structure. The storm was pretty impressive but, "Nah, what are you talking about, Cas? If God wanted us dead he would've hit us already. Just think of it as him lighting our way." Another bolt of lightning danced through the clouds. "Really melodramatically."

There was a long pause before Claire's voice softly picked up from behind him. "Is the lightning going to hit us?"

"Probably not."

"'Probably'?"

Before Dean had a chance to explain, know-it-all Sam Winchester had to jump in with a small huff of disapproval. "Don't worry Claire, you have a bigger chance of winning the lottery than getting struck by lightning. Even if we did get hit, as long as we're in the car it shouldn't matter. The rubber in the tires will act as an insulator so we won't get hurt."

Neither Cas nor Claire seemed particularly comforted by the new bit of information. A frown settled on Castiel's forehead as he leaned in. "How long will it take for us to reach Chicago?"

Dean tilted his head to look at the clock then out the window. "I'd say Sammy should get us there within the hour. At this time of night, traffic shouldn't be too bad so we shouldn't have any trouble getting into the city." Before they had sped off Bobby had wrote down his contact's address and Sam had mapped it out with the GPS on his phone. Dean wasn't a fan of technology but even he had to appreciate that particular application.

Between Dean's instincts and Sam's phone, Dean's time prediction turned out to be fairly spot on. They reached the outskirts of Chicago about an hour and twenty minutes later with the lightning storm hot on their heels. Dean was just happy that it was Sam and not him who was driving as they began to wind their way through the busy city streets. Like L.A., Chicago was large and jumbled and though Dean _could've_ managed to navigate the highways and byways he was glad that he wasn't the one who had to. Especially when they finally found the street they were looking for and Sammy had to find a place to park.

Dean loved his baby to a degree bordering on the unhealthy, but the Impala could be a bitch to park sometimes. It didn't help that the road Sam was struggling to find a spot on was clearly in a very wealthy and well-established area with absolutely no public parking and only a hand-full of small spots left that they could parallel park into. They had to circle the long city block four times before a space opened up that was large enough to even consider parking the Impala in and it took Sam another three full minutes to wiggle her into it. Dean did his best to keep his mouth shut during the whole affair but after hearing him demand fifteen times not to scratch her, Sam seemed ready to get out of the car.

Rolling his eyes, Dean followed after his brother as Sam tumbled out of the driver's seat and began to make his way up towards the townhouse that matched the address Bobby had given them. Cas and Claire exited the Impala a little more cautiously, both of the eyes glued on their destination. Dean didn't blame them; it was definitely a little intimidating.

The building was made of some kind of gray brick, a short flight of marble stairs leading up to an ornately detailed doorframe. The structure looked to be at least four floors tall, two windows on each floor looking out over the street and framed themselves by detailed stone scrollwork. At the very top of the building four gargoyles were sitting along the roofline, their grotesque faces locked onto the buildings newest visitors. Drapes were drawn shut across all the windows, blocking the inside from view, and it was so still, so quiet, that if Dean hadn't known any better he'd have thought that no one was even living there.

Claire was clinging back onto Cas's jacket and the gloom coming off of the building had even effected Sam, the younger Winchester pausing at the bottom of the stairs. Stepping up to stand next to him, Dean looked up at the carved wooden door, the snarling face on the wrought iron doorknocker glaring back down at him. He didn't even glance back as he heard Cas and Claire come to stand behind him, his eyes stuck on that doorknocker. "Well…what are you waiting for, Sam?"

Sam's face drew up into a small, confused frown. "I don't know. It, feels like something's waiting for us inside."

Trying to shake off just that same feeling, Dean attempted to make a joke out of it. "I hope there's someone waiting for us, otherwise Bobby gave us some bad information. And I don't know about you guys but I could really use a little bit of sleep somewhere relatively safe."

By now Sam's frown had spread to Castiel, the drained angel eyeing the windows uncertainly. "I agree with Sam. Dean, I don't know if this is a safe place for us to be."

"Come on, you guys. Show a little backbone, huh?" Dean was sure Bobby wouldn't have sent them anywhere dangerous, definitely not without warning them about it first. Besides, they should know better than most that appearances didn't necessarily mean everything. That, and he really wanted to get some actual rest. Even if this place was a little sketchy, if there was a place he could lay his head down without having to worried about it being cut off by a demon or an angel then that was enough for him.

The others still seemed hesitant so Dean figured that he was going to have to be the first one to act if they wanted anything at all done tonight. Sure it was a little creepy but it wasn't _that_ bad. As he stepped forward onto the first stair out of the corner of his eye he saw Cas move as if to grab hold of him but the angel faltered halfway through the motion. Shaking his head, Dean quickly made his way up to the top of the stairs but stopped short again as he reached the door. The doorknocker was even creepier up close, the metal twisted into some sort of mix between a human skull and an old man, its iron eyes narrowed like they were daring Dean to knock. "Dude, you're fugly…"

"Dean." Dean looked back over his shoulder to find Sam following him up the stairs, Castiel and Claire still lingering on the sidewalk. "Are we sure this is the right place?"

Alright, now they were just being ridiculous. "Yes, Sam, this is the right freaking place. It's the exact address Bobby wrote down for us. You wanna call him and confirm or could I just knock on the door like a big boy and ask whoever lives here?"

Sam's bitch face returned in full force and he crossed his arms over his chest. "Fine, whatever, Dean. Just, make it fast, alright?"

Dean scoffed and threw a glance down to Cas. The angel was gripping Claire's hand and scanning the building in front of them like he could see something more than bricks and darkened window panes. If he felt more comfortable down on the sidewalk, Dean wasn't going to make him come up but he kind of wished that Cas would stick a little closer to them.

As if he could read Dean's mind, Castiel's eyes lowered to his face before he slowly, grudgingly gathered Claire up and made his way up the stairs to stand behind Sam. When he spoke, his voice was tense, the anxiety in his eyes reflected in his daughter's. "If you are going to knock you should do it quickly, before we are noticed."

Dean wanted to ask who Cas thought would notice them but instead turned to do as both Sam and Cas had asked and just knock already. Reaching out his hand, he decided to just go for it and banged on the door three times with his fist. The sound reverberated in the quiet around them, the background noise of the city fading to nothing as they all seemed to hold their breaths, listening for any sort of reply.

Just as Dean was about to try again a reply came in the form of footsteps strolling leisurely to the door. Dean instinctively took a step back, feeling Sam, Cas, and Claire doing the same behind him but he felt stupid for it a second later when the door swung open to reveal a short, middle-aged man with pale skin, neatly combed dark hair in a dark, well-tailored suit. In a nutshell, not terribly intimidating which is why Dean was so confused as he felt Sam take another step back, leaving him alone on the top stair with the strange man.

Feeling like he was very much out of the loop, Dean nodded towards the guy who was currently eyeing him like he was a door-to-door salesman. "Um, hey. Are you Crowley?"

A little smirk appeared on the man's face. "It depends on who's asking." His voice was thick with a British accent, making Dean feel just a little more inferior than he already had, which was saying a lot.

"My name's Dean Winchester and this," Dean waved behind him to where the rest of his group was hopefully still waiting, "is my brother Sam and Castiel Novak and his daughter Claire. You don't know us but Bobby Singer told us that you might be able to help us out?"

The man, who had been scanning each of them in turn, let out a snort at Dean's words at finally looked back at him. "Yes, that does sound like him. Dear old Bobby Singer, I'll have to pay him a visit soon."

His tone sounded anything but friendly and for a moment Dean had to wonder at just what Bobby had gotten them—and himself—into. "So can you help us, or not?"

Leaning up against the doorframe, Crowley eyed them each in turn again. "It depends on how much help you're asking for. There is, after all, only so much I am able to do." His eyes lingered for just a second too long on Claire and Dean got the sudden, sickening impression that he _knew_, knew everything.

Feeling exposed, Dean quickly grew defensive, his uneasy stance growing stronger as he squared his shoulders. "We just need someplace to sleep for the night, preferably where we can get some food too. Bobby said you owed him a favor, so I guess he figured you'd be able to put us up."

There was a long moment of quiet where Crowley just raised a brow and stared at Dean and Dean just stared back. Then, apparently having made up his mind, the man shrugged, spun around on his heels, and nonchalantly waved them inside. "Very well. I'll consider my debt with Mr. Singer settled though, with interest."

Relieved that things seemed to be working out, Dean moved to follow but he was stopped; this time Castiel really had grabbed his arm and he was holding him back, his foot stuck inches from crossing over the threshold. His eyes were bright and serious, the drained angel's grip still tight as a vice on his leather jacket. "Dean, you clearly do not understand the situation."

No, clearly he didn't. "Then how about you explain it to me?"

Castiel's eyes darted into the house Crowley had vanished into. "This Crowley is a very high ranking demon. I didn't recognize it before but seeing him face to face confirms it."

"_What?_" Dean looked to Sam for conformation and his brother nodded with a deep frown on his face. _Damn it_.

His head spun back around as Cas continued. "Even in the condition I'm in I can tell he's very powerful and has almost certainly already discovered who and what we are. I'm not sure I'm comfortable with bringing Claire inside."

Now Dean knew why the others had hesitated as much as they had at the bottom of the steps. All he saw was a creepy-ass building but somewhere in the back of all their minds they must've been able to sense the demon lurking inside. But they had already come this far and Dean was tired. Looking at everyone else's faces, he knew they were tired too. None of them were in any condition to drive tonight. They needed some freaking sleep if they wanted to stay sharp.

"Look, Bobby trusts this guy so I don't think he'll hurt us. Bobby wouldn't have sent us here otherwise."

Dean's argument seemed to have an effect on Sam, the young man beginning to mull it over in his head. Castiel however looked like he was still too wary of the demon inside the house to trust completely in their opinion of a man they had just reconnected with. Dean sympathized, he really did; sleeping in a room next to a powerful demon wasn't exactly his idea of an ideal hotel to him either but if Crowley didn't try to kill them in their sleep, he might be able to offer them some sort of protection.

"How about this." Sam stepped up to stand next to Dean and he knew he'd won his brother over, "We'll try staying the night here, just to get a few hours of sleep, but the second we start to feel that something weird is going on we jump back in the car and keep driving."

Castiel's hand tightened around his daughter's. "I, don't know."

"It's alright, Daddy." They all looked down as Claire gazed up at Cas, her lips drawn down into a nervous frown but her eyes determined. "If Bobby likes him, he can't be that bad, right?"

Dean gave the girl a small smile. If she could get past the fact that Crowley was a demon, the rest of them shouldn't be having this much of a problem with it. "I guess not." Bending down so that they were on the same eye-level, Dean's smile grew a little stronger. "What do you think, Claire? Do _you_ think we should stay here?"

The little girl shifted on her feet before nodding into her father's trench coat. "We could."

"Alright. Good enough for me." Straightening up, Dean met Cas and Sam's eyes and, seeing no real resistance, turned around and walked into the house.

The entrance hallway was unexpectedly luxurious, the dark hardwood floors looking like they were recently polished as they reflected the heavy iron chandelier hanging above them. The wallpaper was old but well-kept and dark, almost absorbing the small amount of light the dim chandelier cast on it. It reminded Dean a lot of a classic haunted house you always saw in the movies except it felt empty, the air almost devoid of life.

With four more steps forward Dean had moved from the entrance room into a longer hallway and Crowley himself reappeared from a side room. Now knowing what he was, Dean had to wonder how he'd missed it before. He looked human but, like angels, demons seemed to emit an aura. Demons' were subtler, darker, harder to define, but they were there; that hint of the unnatural that only came with the inhuman.

Crowley didn't seem to notice the change in his perceptions though or, if he did, he just didn't care. "It took you lot long enough to decide if you were actually going to come in or not. "

"Yeah, well, this wasn't exactly what we were expecting to find."

"I'll take that as a compliment, I suppose." Seeing them eye the interior of the house, Crowley glanced up at it all with a smirk. "Gorgeous, isn't it? I'm watching the place for, well, let's call him a friend." Spinning on his heel, he made his way further down the hall, clearly expecting for them to follow. "You see, he comes around every hundred years or so and when he touches ground he enjoys his comforts. The last time he visited he came to Chicago and loved the city so much he decided to invest."

Dean paused as Crowley led them passed a darkened sitting room. Heavy brocade curtains were drawn across floor to ceiling windows, another wrought iron chandelier hanging unlit from the ceiling. The room was still, musty, and completely overtaken by the huge marble fireplace set in the far wall. But the thing that really grabbed his attention was above the fireplace where a large portrait hung. It was of an old man, his face gaunt and pale and severe looking in his black suit. He was seated, his hands resting on the arm of an intricately carved wooden chair, a large silver ring glinting on his finger. His eyes though, the way they were painted made them look bottomless and omnipresent, almost like they were staring straight at the viewer. Dean had to shake off a feeling of dread that had settled over him before he continued on, his gaze catching a statue of a black horse rearing up wildly sitting on the mantle in front of the portrait before he had to keep walking.

Sam's voice had alerted him that they were moving on, his voice low but curious. "Who exactly owns this place?"

"None of your business, that's who."

When they reached the end of the hall, Crowley led them through another door and into a surprisingly normal looking kitchen and casual dining room. Stopping at a cabinet on the far wall, the demon opened the cupboard and pulled out a bottle of scotch and a glass. Dean was ready to accept one for himself but Crowley only grabbed the one cup and poured the scotch for himself.

Leaning against the counter, Crowley took a long sip, leaving the rest of them standing their awkwardly until he spoke again. "So, are you going to tell me why you're here, or should I just guess?"

Dean, still feeling slightly defensive, bristled at the question. "Maybe that's none of _your _business."

"I'll guess then, shall I? Let's see…You" he pointed at Dean, "despite all your blustering don't seem that interesting. You," his finger moved to point at Sam, "are slightly more so. You're diluted, but certainly still demonic…I can't quite make out your lineage, though it's probably for the best. I don't want to begin to think about who would let their power get so thinned by human blood. Speaking of which…" As his eyes shifted to Cas and Claire, Crowley tilted his head up, " I _am_ interested to find out who _you_ are. It isn't often that I find myself in the presence of an angel, even one as broken down as you are, and even rarer that I encounter a Nephilim."

Castiel frowned and Dean couldn't help it as he shifted just slightly to the side so that Claire was partially hidden from the demon's gaze. "As Dean said at the door, my name is Castiel."

"You are a long way from home, Castiel. Few of your brothers would be willing to do what you seem to have done."

Castiel's frown deepened. "I am different than my brothers."

"Clearly." Taking another drink of his scotch, Crowley's gaze never left Castiel over the rim of his glass. "You do realize that an independent mind isn't a trait that Heaven looks kindly upon. Rumor says that's what happened to my own Father."

"So I've heard. But I'm sure even you realize that there are some distinct differences between myself and Lucifer."

"Yes, you do lack a certain…ambition. A shame, really." Tipping his glass back, Crowley finished his scotch and set the empty cup down onto the counter behind him. "Now, no one has yet answered my question as to why you turned up on my metaphorical welcome mat. However, having confirmed who you are, it's not difficult to imagine why. Assuming you've just come from Singer's and knowing the types he tends to associate with, I'll wager that you got yourself in a bit of trouble while trying to keep that," he nodded towards Claire, "alive. I can't imagine that your sort or mine are very happy to see such a thing walking around."

Castiel's eyes grew dark and Dean stepped in before a battle between Heaven and Hell broke out right here in this kitchen. "'That' is a little girl and she has a name. But yeah, Claire is why we're here. We've got demons _and_ angels chasing after us and we could really use a safe place to crash so if it's not too much trouble—"

Crowley cut through his sarcasm with a roll of his eyes. "I let you in, didn't I? In case you can't translate simple social actions, that means you can stay. Though I will undoubtedly come to regret that decision. It's a nasty business you've gotten yourself into, what with all the demon and angel nonsense."

Dean snorted, "You say that as if you're not a part of that."

"Me?" Crowley raised a brow, "I'm just a salesman."

"Oh yeah? And what do you sell?"

The demon shrugged, his body language relaxed but his gaze strangely focused. "This and that, depending on the century. Oh, and I'm in the business of souls as well. Interested in selling yours?"

Dean scoffed, then saw Sam and Cas straighten up beside him and realized that Crowley was serious. "What? No! What the hell kind of demon deals in souls?" He thought that was all myth. But you could actually _sell_ your soul? Who would do that? There was nothing Dean could think of that would be worth—okay, there were only a handful of things Dean could think of that would ever be worth something like that.

"My type. Not all demons are the same, Dean. Not all of us have the same needs and desires. I am what you humans so affectionately term a 'crossroads demon'. I make deals for a living."

"How does Bobby know you again?"

"It is curious, isn't it? You'll just have to ask him when you see him next. _If_ you see him again, that is."

"Great. Thanks. You're a real—"

Before Dean could finish his insult, he was distracted as Claire let out a short breath, "_Daddy!_"

Immediately Castiel was back on guard, along with Dean and Sam. The last time she sounded like that it was because there was a—"Daddy, it's another dog!"

Dean's heart rate jumped and his eyes flashed up to where Claire was now pointing, towards the doorway they had just come through. Crowley, on the other hand, just raised both brows at the girl's distress and calmly threw a glance back over his shoulder. "Two of them, actually."

Now Dean could hear their low growls, the noises seeping out and growing louder. Remembering that the last time he met up with these things he nearly lost his life—and that had been with the Impala shielding him from a direct attack—Dean backed up, bumping into Sam as the two of them, Castiel, and Claire all pressed themselves back against the wall. Crowley had the freaking gall to look amused. "It seems you've had a previous run in with this particular species before." Claire whimpered as one of the hellhounds apparently came closer, Crowley's hand lifting to stroke at the invisible beast's head. "But I assure you, these two wouldn't harm a fly—unless I told them to, that is. Then they'd eviscerate it."

Dean stared, unable to speak, but Sam managed to find his voice. "You, keep these things as pets?"

"Why not? I suppose they remind me of home. Which, come to think of it, is not something I want to think of often." Crowley shoved the unseen hellhound's head away like it was an overly affectionate golden retriever. "Their names are Ceberus and Orthrus. More than anything, if something comes after you tonight they will be the ones who will bother to try and save you, not me. I have more important business to attend to."

Dean didn't know if that was supposed to make them feel comforted or make them feel like crap but he was half sure that none of them were in immediate danger of being torn limb from limb. He didn't know if Crowley could really control the hellhounds or not but they didn't seem to be coming any closer and the growling had stopped. He just wished that he could see the damn things. Of course, by the way Claire was staring at the blank space at Crowley's side, maybe it was better that he couldn't.

Glaring at the invisible threat, Castiel bent down and lifted Claire up into his arms, shifting her weight as she wrapped her own arms around his neck. "If you have business that needs tending to now, it would then be best if we made ourselves scarce. Dean, Sam, if our host allows it I believe it would be a good idea to turn in for the night."

Dean could've gone for a snack first but he wasn't keen on the idea of eating with some hellhound sitting next to him. As long as those things were around, he wanted to get as far from them as possible. "Good idea, Cas. Crowley, you got any guest rooms in this place?"

The demon seemed to think it over for a second. "I have two that could probably still be used to sleep in. The other two are being utilized for some projects of mine."

"Should I ask what they are?"

A grin spread across Crowley's face. "Not if you want to sleep tonight. Now, the rooms are upstairs two flights and will be the first and third door you come across. Don't, under any circumstances, go into the middle door. The W.C. is at the end of the hall but if you use up all the hot water, there will be Hell to pay. Oh, and if you hear any…noises during the night, I would refrain from investigating."

Good God, they were all going to die tonight. "Anything else we should know about? Any random sulfur plumes that pop up, vengeful spirits maybe?"

"Not that I know of, but if you find any, do let me know. They could be useful."

It was hard being sarcastic when the target of your sarcasm was more cynical than you were. Giving up, Dean retreated with Sam, Castiel, and Claire upstairs, away from Crowley, away from the hellhounds, and with the knowledge that they were still being hunted even now retired to their respective rooms to try and get some shut eye.

The room Sam and Dean ended up with looked like something out of museum. The bed was a heavy four-poster with a thick canopy covered in dust hanging over it, the comforter and mattress underneath looking just as unused. On the wall there were a few pictures of some sort of medieval battle, stylized death and gore painted on in gruesome detail. The bed was barely large enough for both of them to fit on, both having to lay on their sides so they didn't bump up against each other during the night and Dean was pretty sure Sam's feet were hanging off the edge. After saying a reluctant good-night to Cas they had locked the door tight but Dean wasn't quite sure that a locked door would stop a curious hellhound. He really hoped it would.

And he was really pretty sure that he had never slept worse in his entire life.

OoOoOo

Dean was startled awake from the meager amount of sleep he _had_ been able to get by a strangled shout ringing in his ears. Bolting straight upright, he nearly tumbled off the bed as Sam gave a wild trash beside him. One of his brother's long arms smacked his chest and Dean grabbed onto it, both to keep himself from falling off and to try and shake Sam out of it. "Sam? Sam! Hey! Wake up, dammit!"

With one more flail, Sam's eyes snapped open as he let out a sharp gasp. Ripping his arm out of Dean's grasp he flung himself in the other direction and Dean winced as he rolled off onto the hardwood floor with a loud thud. Better Sam than him though.

Leaning over the edge, Dean raised his brows as his eyes landed on Sam who was now laying on his back as if stunned, his breath coming out in quick pants. "You alright, Sam?"

"Ugh…" Grimacing, Sam pushed himself up, freeing his hand from the sheets that had tangled around his body so that he could push his hair out of his eyes. "…I think."

"What happened?"

With a quick shake of his head, Sam crawled back onto the mattress. "I, had another vision." His fingers moved up to massage his forehead. "Yeah, definitely did."

Dean's pulse quickened back up. From his limited experience with Sam's visions he already knew for sure that they didn't mean anything good. "What of?"

"Claire, and Cas. They were out, somewhere, I couldn't tell, and surrounded by a circle of demons."

Worry exploded in Dean's chest. If this one came true like Sam's last prediction had they were in some deep shit. Cas was in no condition to face down a herd of demons and wouldn't be able to keep either himself or Claire safe for long. "_What?_ Where were they? How long do we have?"

"I couldn't make it out. We could have hours, could have seconds, I don't know."

"Son of a bitch…" Gritting his teeth, Dean threw his own covers off and stumbled towards the bedroom door. He ripped it open and darted out with Sam hot on his heels. Together they thundered down the hall, Dean nearly busting the door to Cas and Claire's down as he rammed it open with his shoulder.

He had been expecting the worst, had been ready to find the covers thrown off a blood-stained mattress with the window wide open, so it was a relief when he was met instead with a dark glower. Cas had sprung up in bed when they had burst in, his black hair ruffled into a mess, a five o' clock shadow dusting his cheeks, and his blue eyes narrowed in a sleepy glare. Beside him Claire had startled awake and was now staring at Sam and Dean with wide-eyed shock, her blonde hair loose around her shoulders. Castiel was the first to speak, his tone a gravely murmur. "Dean, Sam, what is it?"

Too relieved to care about the angels' irritation Dean hurried into the room and over to the window, checking the latch to make sure it was locked shut. "Are you two okay? Did anything strange happen overnight?"

"You mean besides being awoken by you breaking our door in?" Noting that lack of sleep made Cas cranky, Dean sent him a short glare of his own. This seriously wasn't the time for him to get an attitude.

Sensing that Dean meant business, Cas released a long sigh and scrubbed at his face with his hands. "No, Dean, to my knowledge nothing unusual has happened. Why are you asking?"

Finally satisfied that nothing had tried to get in while Cas and Claire had been sleeping, Dean turned to face their bed. He thumbed over at Sam who was still standing in the doorway, "Sam had another vision this morning."

Claire tilted her head curiously but Castiel froze before pulling his hands away from his eyes and looked up at Dean. "And this vision caused you to run directly to our room?" At Dean's nod, Cas's gaze flew over to Sam. "What was your dream about?"

Sam's own eyes bounced from Castiel to Claire. "Uh, maybe we should talk about this in the hall."

It was clear he didn't want to scare the girl but Cas seemed not to have the same concern. "I'd rather you tell me immediately."

"Alright. I saw you, and Claire, standing in some sort of open space. You were, surrounded by demons and it didn't exactly look like they were friendly."

Cas's eyes narrowed again but this time it was in deep thought. "Sam, you said before that these premonitions of yours can be changed by your actions in the present."

"Yeah, but, it's not easy. You know what happened the last time." The last time Sammy had one of his visions it had been of them getting chased down by the hellhounds and even though they drove as fast as they could they still hadn't been able to outrun it.

Claire grabbed Castiel's hand and tugged lightly on it but the older angel ignored her for the moment. "But it is possible. You didn't notice the place, but do you remember anything else about your dream? The time of day, the type of ground under our feet, anything?"

Looking genuinely apologetic, Sam shook his head. "Sorry Cas, it was intense but really short. I mostly just saw you and Claire, your faces, and the demons."

"But you and Dean, the both of you were not present at the time?"

Sam opened his mouth to answer then paused, thought about it, and lifted his brow, "You know, we weren't."

"Wait," Dean butted in, "Why would Cas and Claire be running around on their own long enough for them to be caught by demons?"

"Exactly." It was Cas's turn to cut in. "The way I see it, if Claire and I take great care to not separate ourselves from either of you two then Sam's vision wouldn't be able to become reality."

"Do you think it could really be that easy?"

"Experience would say not but logically it seems like a sure enough solution."

Dean let out a breath then looked to Sam. When his brother only shrugged, Dean knew that all of them were flying blind. None of them knew what to do but all of them seemed to waiting for _him_ to make the decision. Who the hell was _he_ to decide anything this important?

Shaking his head, Dean rested his hands on his hips, his gaze falling to his bare feet. This was what he got for trying to take care of everyone. Not that he regretted a second of it. "Okay. I'm not sure it will work but the way I see it Cas's plan is the only one that really makes sense right now. We need to keep moving and can't just sit around waiting for the demons to find us. As we go we'll just have to make sure that outside this house neither Cas or Claire," as he said their names Dean looked at each Novak in turn, "goes _anywhere_ without one of us, you got it?" Claire nodded quickly, Cas following shortly after. "Alright, good."

During his rant Dean had glanced the pale light of sunrise out of Cas and Claire's window and knew that there would be no point in him going back to his bed now. Especially now that he had way too much on his mind to sleep. Dammit, he had been hoping on getting more than four hours of rest in today. "I'm gonna go put some clothes on then find Crowley and ask what he can do to help us out."

"Good idea." Sam stepped aside so that Dean had easy access to the hallway. "I'm actually surprised he didn't storm over here to demand what all the noise was about."

Now that Sam mentioned it, so was Dean. He couldn't imagine the demon letting any opportunity to rip them a new one go, which meant that Crowley was going to be harder to find than Dean had been anticipating. Of course it didn't really change his plans.

With another glance back at Cas and Claire, just to make sure they were _really_ alright, Dean returned to his own room and quickly threw on a shirt, socks, and shoes, then headed back out. By the time he began to trot down the steps Sam was still lingering in Cas's doorway, his voice low in a murmured conversation that Dean didn't bother to eavesdrop on. He just wanted to find Crowley and get a plan worked out. There was no way he was letting that shit happen to Cas and Claire, not while he was still alive and kicking.

When Dean reached the bottom of the stairs he was met by that stifling silence that seemed to permeate every room of the house. His first check was for hellhounds and, not hearing any growling or the click of claws on hardwood, he began to search the ground level for any signs of their master. It didn't take Dean long to realize that the floor was deserted, the only sign that anyone else had even slept overnight in the house being a drained, lukewarm mug and a used teabag sitting by the sink.

Dammit. Leaning up against the kitchen counter, Dean bent his head down, pressing his forehead against the cool countertop as he tried to think. Crowley definitely hadn't been upstairs or else he would've spoken up when Dean and Sam had come barreling through the hall, and he obviously wasn't downstairs, so where the hell—Dean's thoughts came to a pause as his ears caught the slightest of sounds; the light clink of metal on metal. A frown spread across Dean's face and he had to wait for the noise again before he was actually able to pinpoint its source.

The whisper of sound had come from inside the pantry so either Crowley had a rat problem or…Cautiously walking over, Dean slowly swung the pantry door open, revealing a hidden door sitting slightly ajar in the back of the small closet. It almost looked like the entrance to some old fashioned speak-easy; given the age of the building and seeing that this _was_ Chicago, it actually might've been.

Another clank of metal, louder this time, drew Dean in closer and he pushed the hidden door open. As soon as he did so a disgusting wave of air washed over him, the smell bad enough to make him slap a hand over his nose to try and block it out. He couldn't pinpoint the odor exactly but he bet "decay" wouldn't be far off the mark. Behind the wooden panel was a set of brick stairs leading down into some sort of basement area, the stairwell lit only by the dim flicker of what smelled like kerosene lamps hanging on the wall.

Now Dean didn't scare easy, but the dull, wavering lights, the stench, and the fact that he was probably trespassing on a powerful demon's inter-most sanctum definitely slowed him down as his common sense screamed that he should not be going down those stairs. But he never had been one to pay attention to common sense anyway.

Taking the stairs down two at a time, Dean only stalled again when he got far enough down to see just exactly what he had walked into. The fact that he had finally found Crowley didn't stop him cold in his steps, it was what he had found the demon standing over.

The basement, like the stairs leading down to it, was made out of brick, the walls illuminated only by more kerosene lamps. That same light danced over the shelves of wicked looking instruments lined up along those brick walls as well as a metal table sitting in the center of the room. The table which Crowley was currently bent over, hands buried into the chest cavity of a nightmarish creature that had been splayed open on the tabletop, its limbs dangling off the edge while the demon above it riffled through its internal organs.

"What the fuck are you doing?"

Dean's question startled both himself and Crowley, the demon's eyes jerking up to where Dean was still standing on the staircase. In the blink of an eye, any shock had been replaced by a horrifyingly blasé expression for someone covered to their forearms in blood. Granted, he was wearing gloves, but still, for shit's sake—

"Oh, I'm sorry, do you find this offensive?" The mock sympathy in Crowley's voice sent a shudder down Dean's spine. "Too bad. No one asked you to stay here." Dean could only continue to stare, his mouth open and waiting to respond but no words would come out. Apparently realizing that the human needed rebooting, Crowley rolled his eyes. "Since you came down you might as well make yourself useful. Come over here."

Dean did so automatically, part of him wanting to run back up the stairs to vomit and the other half morbidly curious about the monster sliced open on Crowley's operating table. He was a whole lot less curious when Crowley pulled his hands out from between the thing's ribs with his fingers clenched around a bloody lump of _something_. "Hold this, will you?" Dean grimaced but held out his hands only to earn himself another eye roll and an annoyed huff. "No, put the gloves on _first. _Moron."

Trying to shake himself out of his stupor, Dean found a spare pair of gloves sitting on the shelf behind the demon and after making sure they were on tight and didn't have any holes, opened his hand again. This time Crowley deposited the object in his palms and, holy crap, that was a heart. Dean was holding a freaking heart in his hands.

Avoiding looking at the organ, Dean's gaze quickly shuffled back to the creature on the table, his brow furrowing as he tried and failed to identify it. It wasn't a werewolf, wasn't a vampire, definitely nothing he'd ever seen before, at least not up close. "What the hell is that?"

Turning back to his work, Crowley reached back into the monster's chest with all the concern of a kid reaching into a cookie jar. "This just happens to be a wendigo that one of my dogs found roaming a little too close to our property last night, undoubtedly attracted the lot of you and you're scrambled energies."

Dean pursed his lips, forcing his lunch back down as a bit of blood spurted out of the heart in his hands, like mentioning its previous owner's name had made it want to start beating again. "And why are you cutting it up?"

"Because, unlike you, I believe in educating myself and the fastest way to see what makes something tick is to rip its heart out." With that, Crowley seemed satisfied with whatever work he had gotten done and withdrew his hands from the corpse. "Now give me that and clean yourself up. You're disgusting."

Gladly surrendering the heart to Crowley's care, Dean quickly stripped the bloody gloves off of his hand with a grimace. "I wonder whose fault that is?"

Crowley's brow quirked up as he gently set the heart down in a metal pan resting on the corner of the table that Dean hadn't noticed before. He didn't look too closely, didn't even want to see what else Crowley had collected from the wendigo's body. "Yours, I imagine. Now hurry up, breakfast will be served soon and you won't be allowed at the table like that."

Considering the situation Dean wasn't sure he'd be able to eat but his body didn't seemed to care, his stomach letting out a low whine at the promise of food. The last real meal they had eaten had been back at Bobby's place. "What're we having?"

"Whatever you all can throw together. I expect a full meal to be on the table waiting for me when I get upstairs."

What? "Excuse me?"

"Did I stutter? This isn't a bed and breakfast. You're expected to work."

Dean threw the dirtied gloves onto a random shelf, no longer caring where they ended up. "Wait a minute, I need to talk to you about something first."

Crowley didn't even look back at him, "Let's save our conversation for the dining table, shall we? Move along."

Scowling at the back of the demon's head, Dean left him to finish his work. If Crowley really wanted to eat breakfast he was going to have to come up sometime and when he did Dean could corner him until he gave them some freaking answers. Bobby wouldn't've sent them somewhere just to sleep; Crowley could definitely do more for them and Dean was going to find out what.

But right now he apparently had breakfast to make. Not that he was going to do that on his own.

Fifteen minutes later, Dean had rounded his brother, Cas, and even Claire up and into the kitchen. Much to Dean's dismay it turned out that only he really knew how to cook though. Sure, Sam could throw an edible breakfast together but Dean was the one who could work without a recipe and make something somewhat interesting. Claire was barely tall enough to see over the counter and Cas, Cas was actually pretty useless. As an angel he had never had to eat before so he had never had to cook before.

So Dean started by pulling out ingredients and dishing out orders. He gave Claire the simplest tasks, Cas the only slightly more complicated ones, and he and Sam did what they could with the rest of it. Dean gave all the credit to his awesome pancake-making abilities that breakfast actually turned out as well as it did. That didn't mean it was easy though; Dean took some slight vindictive pleasure in the way they had spilled pancake batter across the counters and gotten flour on the floor. He sort of hoped they left a stain somewhere.

Just when he was about to plate the pancakes, Dean heard a light tisk behind him. He and Sam, who had been busy getting eggs and bacon served up, both turned to find Cas gazing down at Claire with a subtly amused frown on his lips. Claire had somehow managed to get maple syrup all over her hands, probably while she was moving the bottle from the kitchen counter to the table. She looked back up at her father sheepishly, "Sorry."

Dean grinned, "Don't worry, no harm done." Flipping the last pancake onto the plate in his hand, he turned the stove off and walked over to the kitchen table. "Can someone go tell his majesty that breakfast is ready?"

Letting out a little snort as he set the eggs and bacon down by the pancakes, Sam nodded his head. "I'm guessing you mean Crowley and, yeah, I'll go get him." Dean had told them all about the creepy basement Crowley had and Sam had been curious about it ever since. If he wanted to go down there willingly then, hell, Dean wasn't going to stop him.

Cas eyed Claire's sticky fingers as he moved to sit down at the table, "In the meantime, Claire, please go and wash your hands."

A pout appeared on the little girl's lips and she tossed a yearning glance in the direction of Dean's pancakes. "But I'm hungry!"

"The food will still be here when you return."

Dean scoffed as he sat down in the seat next to Castiel. "Unless Crowley eats it all first…"

The angel looked over at him, tilted his head, then nodded. Dean had kind of been joking but the longer Castiel thought about it, the more Dean realized that that demon probably would eat everything, just to spite them. "You'd best wash your hands quickly."

Claire groaned but spun around and dashed out of the room, the sound of her footsteps padding up the staircase just beginning to fade as the hidden door in the pantry swung open and Sam and Crowley came through. When he saw the table set and the food out, Crowley raised a brow and sat gingerly down at the head of the table while Sam sat down across from Dean to the demon's right. "Well, this looks almost like passable food. I'm nearly impressed. Of course my expectations were extraordinarily low so anything that even looked slightly edible would've been a pleasant surprise."

Dean started in on the bacon as Crowley pulled a few of his pancakes onto his plate. "I'm gonna go ahead and take that as a compliment." It was either that or he was going to throw the porcelain plate he was currently piling meat onto at Crowley's head. "Those are damn good pancakes."

"I'll be the judge of that." Lifting up his fork that had a piece of pancake speared at the end, Crowley observed it for a moment before bringing it toward his mouth. Just as he was about to taste it, a loud _bang_ jolted through the house, the demon's hand jerking away from his now-scowling lips. "Oh, for the love of—are you _serious_? Can nothing be easy with you thick-skulled cretins around?"

Dean gaze snapped up from his plate as Sam looked wide-eyed up at the ceiling above them. "What just happened?"

"It sounded as if it came from upstairs!"

"_Claire?_" Castiel pushed his chair out so fast it clattered to the ground behind him and a second later he was dashing out of the kitchen and up the stairs. Dean could hear the angel's footsteps pound up the steps, his voice echoing back from the stairwell. "Claire, are you alright?"

Dean glared accusingly at Crowley as the demon set his fork down with an annoyed huff. "What was that noise?"

Crowley glared right back at him. "You're asking the wrong person. All I know is that nothing came into the house and the only thing I felt leave was the girl."

"_What?_" Jumping to his feet, Dean moved to chase after Castiel."She's gone? Why the hell didn't you say anything?"

"I'm no one's keeper. If the girl decides to leave on her own free will that is no business of mine."

The demon's words caught Dean at the doorway. "What do you mean, on her own free will? She wouldn't've left on purpose! She knew better than that!"

Crowley let out a little derisive snort as he returned his attention to his plate. "Well, she just flew out on her own so you must not know her as well as you thought."

"Claire can't fly. Only Cas can do that!"

"She can now."

Sam turned in his seat and met Dean's gaze, the same shock written in each of the brothers' eyes along with a heavy dose of fear. If Claire had really flown out, she could be anywhere in the freaking world and, without any protection, she'd be a sitting duck for any demons or angels that happened to come across her. This was ten times worse than the vision Sam had and Dean didn't know what they could do to fix it.

The sound of footsteps racing back down the staircase broke Dean out of his growing panic, though the feeling quickly returned as Castiel was suddenly at his side, the angel's face pale. "Dean, Claire is gone!"

Instinctively Dean reached a hand out to steady Cas, holding onto the angel's shoulder and feeling like it alone was keeping him upright. "Cas, Crowley says that Claire just 'flew' off; can she do that?"

"No, at least, she never has." Castiel's blue eyes had a wild tint to them as they swept across the room to land on Crowley. The demon stared back with such certainty that Cas seemed instantly convinced that he was telling the truth. "But, she has been gaining power much faster than I had thought she would. It's possible—If she had grown her wings in within the last few days, I would've been unable to sense it. She must have—She wouldn't have even known what she was doing."

Dean tightened his grip on the angel's arm as he felt Cas start to shake. He was scared shitless and Dean wasn't far behind. He had been hoping that Cas would come down and tell Crowley that it would've been impossible for Claire to go anywhere on her own, but apparently that wasn't the case. "How far do you think she got, Cas?"

"I, I'm not sure." Castiel swallowed, his eyes turning back to Dean, "In this state, I don't know how strong she's gotten, what she's capable of. Probably only a few hundred yards but it could be miles. What are we going to do? She could be anywhere and it won't be long before she's found! Dean, I can't lose her now. Not like this!"

"Alright, hang on, Cas, we'll think of something. It'll be alright." The words came automatically and sounded so sure that Dean almost believed it himself for half a second. Until he remembered he was just spouting bullshit to make himself, and his angel, feel better. His brain scrounged for something, some plan of action. "She can't be out there by herself, so we need to find her, fast."

By now Sam was standing too, his own gaze serious, "Cas, you said that she probably only went about a hundred yards. That means she's most likely within a couple blocks of here, right? Let's go out and start looking."

Crowley finally spoke up from the table, though he didn't bother to stop spooning eggs onto his plate as he did so. "If you're going out there, you lot are going to want to bring some weapons with you. I've had my pets doing rounds but I can tell you for certain that overnight the demons have been closing in. You weren't exactly discreet when you rolled into town in that hunk of junk you call a car."

Dean barely even heard the insult about the Impala, too focused on the sentence before it to give the snide remark any thought. "Our gear's in the trunk."

Before he could say anymore Castiel had tore himself from Dean's grip and was running towards the front door. Sam and Dean were took after him, Dean fumbling for his car keeps as the three of them burst out the front door and ran down the porch steps to the street below. Two seconds later Dean had the trunk open and they all reached inside to pull out anything that could hurt a demon.

Sam hesitated slightly, not knowing where it would be safe to put his hands, but Cas just went for it, emerging with the jug of holy water. "Dean, you should use the shotgun. Although I am essentially human you still have fewer defenses than I against demonic forces."

"But the only thing we have beside the shotgun is the iron bar and I don't think Sam can—"

Sam interrupted with a mirthless smile. "Don't worry about me, Dean. You take the shotgun, I at least have my powers to help keep me safe. Besides," Reaching further into the trunk, he pulled an old work glove that Dean used for maintenance out and slipped it on. The stupid thing barely fit Sam's huge hand but it did the job when Sam used it to pick up the bar of iron, "I can make this work."

"If you're sure." When Sam only nodded, Dean relented and finally picked up the shotgun Bobby had given them and grabbed a handful of salt rounds. As he loaded a round into the gun he was eerily reminded of the night he had first met Cas and Claire. Then he hadn't even known angels were real, thought salt could only blast through ghosts, and the only thing he had been protecting was a building. So much had changed since then, the situation so much more serious now.

Slamming the trunk shut, Dean stuck the extra salt rounds into his pocket as he, Cas, and Sam, took off down the street. Now that they were armed he began to focus on their surroundings as they jogged down the sidewalk. Inside Crowley's house there had been omnipresent sense of gloom but outside a feeling of danger had settled so heavily in the street that Dean found it hard to breathe. It wasn't just because Claire had gone missing, and it definitely hadn't been there when they had pulled into town, at least not to this degree. It made the hair on the back of Dean's neck stand up and his fingers tighten on his gun, his instincts telling him that around each and every corner something was waiting for them.

By the expression on their faces Dean knew that Sam and Cas felt it too but that didn't stop the angel from calling out his daughter's name, his footfalls quickening by a fraction every time he didn't get a response.

As they reached the end of the block, Dean looked over at Sam, "Can you sense anything?"

Sam's eyes were darting around, searching every nook and cranny of each building they passed. "Not Claire, no. I never really could sense her. But…Dean, there are definitely demons near-by. I don't know where but, they're close."

"How close are we talking?"

"Within a mile." Sam shook his head, "That's all I can do, I'm not—" his voice paused as his gaze darted over to a shadow, "I'm not strong enough to tell anything more than that."

If Cas had his full mojo back, Dean was pretty sure that not only would he be able to tell exactly where Claire was but that he'd be able to pinpoint the location of every demon within a ten mile radius. But right now that wasn't an option. "I guess we're going to have to do this the good old fashion human way then. Keep your eyes open."

And they did; as they hurried down the street they looked everywhere, Dean even turning his eyes up to the roofs of the buildings. Every second they didn't find Claire made his gut twist a little tighter in worry and he knew it had to be about ten times worse for Castiel. That worry was what really made up Dean's mind as they reached the end of another block, this time coming up on a four-way intersection. They didn't have the time for this shit, they needed to find Claire _now._

"Okay, we already know she's not where we came from, so everyone pick a direction."

Sam's brow furrowed deeper, "Dean, now would not be a good time for us to split up. We _know_ there are demons running around; the last time the three of us had enough trouble taking down two of them." The implication was clear: if Dean, or Cas at this point, ran into a herd of demons on their own, there wasn't much of a chance for them to make it out.

"It's a risk I'm ready to take." Besides, now that Dean had a way to hurt them he was pretty sure he could at least put up a damn good fight against a demon. But while he had the shotgun, all Cas had on him was some holy water. "Here," reaching into his pocket, Dean pulled his cell phone out and handed it to the angel, "if you see anything, you call Sam so he can come and back you up."

Castiel looked at the phone then up at Dean, "No, you should keep it in case—"

"—We really don't have time to argue. Just take it, Cas." No way was Dean letting him walk into a trap with only a jug of water at his side. This way, if Cas ran into something, at least he could call for help. If Dean ran into something, he'd at least have his shotgun and, well, better him than Cas. At least Claire would still have a father this way. "I'll be fine."

"…If you're certain…"

"I'm sure."

"Alright."

OoOoOo

Sam and Cas still hadn't been happy to split up but the sense of urgency that had been shooting through Dean's veins must've been running through them too because they finally agreed. That had been only five minutes ago but to Dean it felt like hours had already passed as he snuck down a well-to-do Chicago street. It was still early morning but the pale sunlight didn't seem to quite reach the pavement of the road, the beams blocked by low-lying clouds. The shadows seemed too long, the air too still, and the roads too deserted to be natural. Even at this time of day, the residential area should've been buzzing with activity as people went off to work or went out for a jog but it was as if everyone knew better than to step outside.

Sending out a silent prayer to nothing, Dean hoped that Cas and Sam were alright and that one of them found Claire soon. His plan was to go on for about five blocks and, if he didn't find anything by then, to run back to Crowley's place and wait for someone else to show up with news.

A shadow shot by on his right and Dean whipped around, gritting his teeth as his eyes landed on a rat scurrying behind a trashcan. Swearing at himself for being so jumpy, he cleared his throat. "Claire? Claire, you out here? It's me, Dean!"

The only voice he heard in reply was his own echoing back off of the surrounding buildings. "Claire, honey, if you can hear me, hold on! We're coming for you!"

"Are you, now?"

Spinning around, Dean's eyes widened, his fingers tightening on the trigger just as a fist flew into his stomach. The punch threw him back a good five feet, his shotgun going off into the air, completely missing the demon that had appeared behind him out of no where. He looked like an ordinary dude in jeans and a t-shirt but he didn't even bother hiding his eyes, the empty black pools boring into Dean's own green eyes. Righting himself with a grimace, Dean fought down any fear and without a second thought raised his shotgun and fired off a second round.

The demon smirked and ducked to the side, charging him head on and Dean could only brace himself as it slammed into him. This time the blow knocked him down onto his ass, his body skidding another yard onto rough asphalt as the gun tumbled out of his grip.

"_Shit._" Dean scrambled to his feet as fast as possible, the skin on his arms burning from road-rash. "Son of a bitch!"

"Not exactly." The demon's lips twisted back up into a sneer. "What I can't figure out is how you'd really be so stupid as to come out here all by yourself. Did you really think you'd be strong enough to go up against us?"

Eyeing the gun where it lay a mere three feet away, Dean managed to shoot a grin at the creature as it stalked closer, clearly coming in for the kill. "No, not really." Yeah, he could totally reach it. "That's why this time I came prepared for you ugly bastards."

This time when the demon lunged at him he was ready for it. Twisting away from the attack with literally inches to spare, Dean threw himself at his shotgun, practically falling on top of the weapon as he heard the demon turn around for another go. Dean didn't even think, didn't waste the time, just acted, letting his body move, grab the gun, roll over, aim, and shoot just as the demon sprung at him again.

The shotgun went off with a deafening _bang_ and the demon jerked and let out a blood-curdling screech as a round full of rock salt embedded itself in its chest. Flailing back, the demon began to claw at his chest like it was trying to get the make-shift ammunition out, giving Dean all the time he needed to reload, aim, and shoot one more round straight into the thing's head.

Dean had to look away as the demon fell to the ground, the monster looking too human for comfort as life faded from its black eyes. Dean instead turned away, chest heaving from the close-call, and picked himself back up off of the ground. Right. So the demons knew they were here. The demon hadn't seen to know anything about Claire though, so she probably wasn't over here. But that didn't mean the rest of them didn't know where she was. And if that one had shown up here, the rest of them must be around, somewhere close.

He needed to get back to Sam and Cas.

Ignoring the small bursts of pain dancing across his skin, Dean hustled back towards the intersection where he had last seen his brother and Castiel, his heart pounding in his chest. It didn't take long and as he drew close he saw a figure running at him from the opposite direction. It was Sam, his brother's face panicked as he sprinted back to the same intersection.

When he spotted Dean he skidded to a stop, "Dean! Dean, the demons are here!"

"I know, I just ran into one."

"What? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, it's dead, we're good. Did you find Claire?"

"No, but Cas did."

It was Dean's turn to be surprised as Sam began to run off in the direction Castiel had gone in, Dean having to sprint to keep up with his brother's longer stride. "What? Did he call, is she alright?"

"No, he couldn't have called. The demons shut all signals off; I tried calling him after I ran into some of them myself."

"Then how do you know he found Claire?"

"Don't you get it?" Sam turned sharply down an alley and Dean almost tripped over his own feet trying to follow, "Dean, _this_ is the vision I had! We need to find them fast!"

As Sam spoke, everything fell into place in Dean's mind and he didn't both holding in a loud curse. Damn it, why did every vision Sam had have to be so fucking unchangeable?

Sam seemed to know where he was going so Dean followed without another word, his fingers gripping his shotgun so hard now that it almost hurt. Whipping around another corner, Dean's focus came back with a vengeance as Sam let out a stifled gasp.

As they came around the building, Sam's nightmare unfolded before them with a sickening accuracy. There, in the center of the road, Cas was crouched down over Claire, the two barely visible behind the six demons that had them surrounded. Fear surged up in Dean's chest but before he could raise his gun to announce their arrival, one of the demons turned around, the woman giving them a sly look. She had wavy, shoulder-length brown hair, her black eyes gleaming as her red lips tugged up into a grin. "Well, well, look who finally showed up. Tweedle-dum and tweedle-dummer. Sorry boys, looks like you're too late."

"I don't think so!" At the sound of Dean's voice, Cas's head shot up, the fright in his eyes instantly giving way to hope. The look pierced through Dean's heart and he lifted the shotgun, took aim at the demon furthest from where the two angels were huddled together, and fired. It shrieked in surprise, clearly not expecting to be hit with salt, and flung itself back.

The female demon who seemed to be in charge stopped smiling, her gaze sharpening as Sam stretched out his hand and brought the demon standing beside her to its knees, slowly exorcising the thing back to Hell. That moment of distraction was all Castiel needed, the angel leaping to his feet and, still standing protectively in front of his daughter, opened the jug of holy water in his hands and splashed it over the other four demons. A chorus of distorted screams echoed up as they twisted away from the water.

Dean didn't give them any time to recover, quickly using up the rest of the rounds in his pockets as he shot into the small crowd of demons, taking care never to aim too close to Castiel or Claire. The sudden, unanticipated onslaught sent three of the demons scattering back into the shadows, the woman letting out a strangled noise of frustration before dashing off after them. Two demons, the one Sam had exorcised and the first Dean had shot, lay dead on the ground, the pavement scorched around the first where its soul had been sucked back into Hell.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Cas began to move again and as Dean jogged tiredly over to him he realized that the angel was covered in gouges and bruises, blood streaking down his white shirt. He must've been cornered a few good minutes before Dean and Sam found him. "Jesus, Cas, you okay?"

Castiel swallowed then looked up at Dean as Claire suddenly threw herself at Dean's legs, grasping on tight and beginning to bawl her eyes out. She was understandably scared to death but seemed unhurt as Dean reached down to pat her head. "I tried to call, when we found them but it wouldn't go through."

"Yeah, they cut off the cell signals. But you're alright?"

Swallowing again, Cas looked down at Claire. "Relatively, yes. Let's just, quickly, get back."

Dean nodded in agreement, suddenly feeling exhausted though elated just to have his arm wrapped safely around Claire as she began to murmur apologies into his jeans. Sam let out his own little sigh of relief and as the four of them began to stumble back towards the house, Dean let out a tired little noise of surprise. "Huh."

Sammy glanced over, "What?"

"We're not half bad at this."

"What?"

"You know," Dean looked over to meet his eyes, "saving people, hunting things. I can see why Dad did it."

Sam paused then looked down at where Claire was still huddled up against Dean's leg and gave a small nod, "Yeah. I guess so."

OoOoOo

When they made it back to Crowley's place, Dean flat-out ignored the crossroads demon as he hustled Cas up into the bathroom, leaving Sam along to continue comforting Claire. The poor girl seemed to be blaming herself for the entire incident and it wouldn't've been right to leave her alone. Right now though her dad also needed attending to; Dean wanted all of Cas's cuts cleaned and cleaned right before the angel got a very human infection.

Urging Cas up onto the bathroom counter, Dean dug around in the cabinet until he found enough supplies to get by and got to work. Ever since they had started walking back Cas had been silent and nothing changed now, the angel quietly stripping his shirt off and allowing Dean to work.

When Dean had cleaned out all the cuts enough to at least ensure they wouldn't get infected, Dean wrapped them up tight with a roll of old bandages he had found stuck way in the back of the cabinet. "…You gotta be more careful with yourself when you're like this, Cas. It could've been serious."

Letting out a sigh, Dean's remark finally coaxed Castiel into speaking, his blue eyes flitting down to his bandaged arms. "I know but Claire was in danger and I didn't even consider it."

"Of course you didn't, you shouldn't have but—once you know she's safe try to remember, alright? For my sake." Dean's voice softened as he finished up. Placing one hand on each side of Castiel, he leaned against the counter, his head bowing and resting on the angel's pale shoulder. "I nearly had a heart attack when I saw the both of you out there in the open."

Dean felt Castiel's chest rise as he took in a breath before the angel's fingers found his cheek, turning Dean's head enough so that their lips could meet. The soft kiss quickly grew rougher, more desperate, Dean only coming back to himself as he felt Castiel beginning to shy away.

Nuzzling against the angel's bruised jaw, when Dean spoke his voice had gone rough, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Dean let out a little snort and felt Castiel shift beneath him. "Nothing you did. I… dislike how weak I feel right now, in this state. I can't protect my daughter, I can't protect you. I can't do anything."

Dean didn't like the self-hatred he heard in the angel's tone. "You're not that weak, Cas, you're just as strong as me."

He felt Cas smile. "In angelic terms, that is not saying much. No offense."

"Only a little taken. Besides, I don't mind you human."

"Really?"

"Yeah." A small smile spread across Dean's own lips as he leaned in closer, his hands stretching up to find Cas's own as he pushed the angel back against the wall. "Means I can do this."

Cas let out a small noise, half-annoyed, half-aroused as Dean pinned his hands to the wall, the drained angel unable to pull away. Dean soothed the insult with more kisses, pressing closer yet, his body settled in between Castiel's thighs. Cas's hips jerked up as their kiss deepened, causing them both to let out a heavy gasp at the sensation, pulling away just enough so that his lips brushed against Dean's as he spoke. "You, you make a good point. But," he paused as Dean snuck in a kiss, "if I had my powers I would be able to draw my wings out and they're the most, _sensitive_ part of my physical being."

Dean couldn't help the moan that rumbled up from his chest. "Damn, Cas. I—"

"_Would the two of you stop fornicating in my guest bath?_" Both of them jerked away from each other as Crowley's voice rang up from the first floor, instantly ruining the mood."_We have business to discuss!_"

Snorting, Dean rolled his eyes as he nevertheless stepped back and helped a flushed Castiel off of the countertop. "Sure, now he wants to get down to business…"

"He's right though, this isn't the right time to get distracted."

Dean wanted to argue but he couldn't come up with a logical enough solution so he settled on shrugging as Cas pulled his stained shirt back on. They were going to have to go shopping again.

Downstairs they found Sam, Claire, and Crowley waiting for them, though only the demon looked particularly annoyed by their tardiness. "You'd had best have cleaned up any mess you may have left behind."

Sam made a small face at the insinuation but Dean just waved it off. "Don't worry, there's no mess." Thanks to Crowley stopping them before it got good. "What'd you want to talk about?"

Crowley frowned up at him. "We need to discuss what you bloody idiots are going to do now that you've caused a ruckus in my front yard. Those demons you let get away are sure to run back and let everyone and their mothers know where you are. More than that, while you four were out gallivanting around, I got wind that the angels are closing in as well. It'll be a photo-finish for who makes it here first…"

"So what do we do?"

"Run, and fast. I've done some investigation of my own and found where you need to go." Crowley slipped his hand into his suit pocket and pulled out a small sheaf of paper with an address scrawled across the top in old-fashion cursive. "The Archangel Gabriel is staying there and it seems as if he is alone so you shouldn't run into any larger entourage."

Dean accepted the paper with shock written clearly across his face. He'd been expecting Crowley to help them but this was more than he had thought the demon could do for them. He must've had to use a pretty powerful spell to be able to get that sort of information. "Thanks."

Sam's eyes narrowed as seemed to reevaluate Crowley. "If demons and angels are both coming here, doesn't that mean that you'll be in danger? What if Dean takes Cas and Claire somewhere in the Impala and I stay here to help you?"

The demon snorted and looked up at Sam with a condescending eye. "I don't need you to fight my battles for me, Moose. I've got my own assurances."

Dean stiffened as he felt something brush up against his leg, a dry smile stretching across Crowley's face as he reached out as one of his hellhounds stalked up to stand next to him. "I'm strong enough to beat back a few cannon-fodder demons and withstand an angel's wrath…or slippery enough to avoid it. You'd best do the same. Get going, I'll only be able to keep them distracted for so long."

He didn't need to tell Dean twice.


	8. Chapter 8

*Peeks from around corner* Uh, hi. I thought about updating you as to the chapter's status but as the days went by I decided it would be best just to maintain radio silence. That way maybe some of you would start to worry that maybe I had gotten terribly sick or died and when I finally got this chapter up you would be so relieved that you'd forget about how long it took me to write it. So big thanks to the few and the wonderful who reviewed the last chapter: supreme dramon, Paulathe Cat, egyptian1995, keiko-uchiha, ramen-is-my-goddess, and Afgncaap8! You dudes rock!

O

* * *

><p>Chapter 8<p>

* * *

><p>Seventy miles from Chicago Dean realized that they never got a chance to eat breakfast. It was actually his stomach that reminded him of this fact, the damn thing letting out a noise so loud that he was pretty sure that the angels—where ever they were—could hear it.<p>

By then the surge of adrenaline from Claire's disappearance was just beginning to fade to a manageable level and Dean was almost afraid to say anything, not wanting to break the palpable sense of relief emanating off of all of the Impala's passengers at being alive and back on the road. But if Dean was hungry he knew Sam was probably hungry and even if they weren't hungry Cas and Claire definitely needed to eat too. They needed to stop for gas soon anyway so they might as well refuel themselves at the same time.

Their next chance came about five minutes later in the form of a gas station right off the highway with a connecting mini-mart. Dean didn't even give anyone a chance to argue as he pulled in. "Alright guys, chow time. Everyone get out of the car."

Cas frowned in the backseat. "We don't have the time to be making any unnecessary stops, Dean."

"This _is_ necessary, Cas."

"Then if you and Sam could quickly go in—"

Dean firmly cut him off as he parked. "Like I said, we're all going in. You're not an angel anymore, you need to get something to eat too." Castiel's face fell and instantly Dean felt like an ass for mentioning it. That didn't make it any less true though.

Not knowing what to say to comfort him, Dean chose to just move the conversation along. He turned to Sam who was watching his and Cas's interaction wearing an expression that was just a little too pensive for Dean's liking. "Come on, Sam. Claire, Cas, you two follow us, alright?"

This time no one argued and all four of them climbed out of the Impala. Claire slipped away from her now-sullen father to walk next to Sam, leaving Dean and Cas to make their way side-by-side to the store. Casting a quick glance in the earth-bound ex-angel's direction Dean was relieved to see that Castiel didn't look angry, just tired. It wouldn't be good for there to be any awkward silence between them now, not when they were going to be stuck so close together for the foreseeable future.

Clearing his throat, Dean tried again as Sam led the way into the gas-station's shop. "You want me to get you a cup of coffee while you check out the food, Cas?"

Castiel was slow to answer, clearly still bothered by the concept that he actually required food and drink. Dean knew it was a sore spot for him; he shouldn't have brought it up. Then again, it was better than letting him starve himself because of his pride. "…You don't need to go out of your way."

"I'm going over there to get a cup for myself anyway."

"Then…yes, please." Huffing out a little sigh, Cas lifted his gaze as they stepped through the doorway. "I believe I could benefit from its effects right now."

"I think we could all do with a little pick-me-up."

Looking around the small store, Dean instantly picked out where the coffee machine was and made a b-line for it, leaving Cas to trail after Sam and Claire towards the fresh foods section. By the time Dean had three cups filled with hot coffee they had all picked out their breakfast, er, lunch—brunch item and Sammy was waiting for him at the counter so he could pay for all of it. Claire and Cas were right behind him, both looking just slightly happier now that they were holding some food in their hands. Cas had two pre-made sandwiches in his hand and Claire had one of those single-serving size boxes of cereal and a bottle of chocolate milk. They should've probably been insisting on her eating some healthier food but, what the hell, now seemed the perfect time to spoil her a little.

Dean passed around the coffee as he got to the register, Sam giving him a small nod of thanks as he accepted his. When his fingers brushed against Cas as he exchanged the cup for a sandwich the other had picked out for him Dean knew that all was forgiven for his earlier comment.

Their dining location options were pretty much limited to the curb and the car so they returned to the Impala, her leather seating winning out over concrete. They needed to refuel too—it seemed like they _always_ needed to refuel—so Sam remained outside, using one hand to pump gas and the other to shove a gas-station burrito into his mouth. Claire and Cas were in the back seat, their doors open to allow a cross-breeze in, and Dean sat with his back leaning against the dashboard so he could face them while he ate. Claire was barely visible over the top of the front bench seat but she managed to keep Dean's attention all the same, talking as she ate about one random topic after another.

The break was good and gave Dean a chance to relax a little of the tension from his body. From where he was sitting he could everybody and he could see that, at least for the next ten minutes or so, they were safe.

Finishing his sandwich faster than he should have, Dean drained his coffee and decided that he'd probably best get another cup full before they took off. Who knew how long he'd have to keep himself awake for? That, and he had seen a sign for half-off refills inside. "Hold up on finishing that story, Claire. I'm gonna to make a run back inside."

The Nephilim pouted at having been cut off, Cas hiding a grin in his sandwich as she nodded sullenly. Dean didn't bother to cover his own smirk and reached forward to ruffle her hair before slipping back out of the car. Sam gave him a look but all Dean had to do was wave around his empty cup for his brother to get the picture. In response, Sam rolled his eyes but nodded, swallowing just long enough to get a sentence out. "Make it fast, Dean. We need to get going."

"Yeah, yeah. I know." Thanks for the reminder.

Because of Sam's words the tension was back in Dean's shoulders as he returned to the gas station. Stepping back inside, he turned and walked right over to the coffee station after nodding at the attendant. As soon as Dean had entered there was a ringing in his ear but Dean figured that it was just his nerves, overlooking it in favor of refilling his cup.

Glancing up through the dusty window of the mini-mart, a small smile flickered onto Dean's lips despite his renewed anxieties as he watched the others at the car. Sammy was now leaning against the trunk, finishing wolfing down his burrito while he watched the tank fill up, while Cas remained seated in the back. Claire had climbed out of the car and was now standing up between the angel and Sam, trying to eat her cereal and have a conversation with the both of them at the same time.

Looking at them from this distance it would be easy for Dean to pretend that they were just on a normal road-trip, driving cross-country for no other reason than to explore the world. At one point that was all Dean ever dreamed about doing—just getting into the Impala and driving as far as the roads would take him—but now…If this was as close as he ever got to the real thing, this would definitely be good enough.

Noticing that his coffee cup was full, Dean picked up his cup and pulled himself away from the window. The cashier gave him a nod and a half-sincere smile as Dean walked over to her. She was a pretty little thing; if Dean had met her about a month ago he would've had flirted her skirt off. Now though he just wanted to get back to Cas, Claire, and Sam so they could get back on the road.

Unfortunately the girl didn't know that and started up a conversation as soon as Dean set his coffee cup down on the counter. "Mornin'. I noticed you in here earlier, you look like you're gearin' up for a full day."

She motioned towards his large cup of coffee with a flirty little smile which Dean chose to ignore. Instead, he let out small huff of laughter at the observation as he brought his wallet out. "You don't know the half of it."

"Where are you driving to?"

Dean huffed out a breath, "New York, hopefully."

The girl's eyebrows disappeared beneath her bangs. "Wow. New York's a pretty long drive from here."

Yes, yes it was. Each time they passed a road-sign Dean was reminded of how far they still actually had to go. "That's why I need the coffee."

The girl grinned as if he had just made a joke but Dean couldn't muster up a smile in return, which was strange considering she was so cute. The ringing in Dean's ears though had gotten louder, more like a dull hum and it was really starting to bug him. Shaking his head to try and rid himself of the noise, Dean's eyes narrowed. "Hey, is it just me, or do you hear something?"

The attendant shrugged. "What, that humming?"

"Yeah, that." Thank God she was hearing it too. That meant he wasn't going nuts.

"It's probably just some machinery or somethin'. It just started up a few minutes ago so I figure it'll pass soon."

As if responding to her prediction, as soon as the words left the cashier's lips the noise seemed to intensify, growing louder and sharper. Dean winced, his eyes narrowing as he looked up. It seemed to be coming from the ceiling. "What the hell _is_ that?"

Now even the cheerful employee seemed annoyed, her hands pressing over her ears. "I've never heard it before, I don't know what's causin' it."

Dean knew the sound of most motors but this definitely wasn't coming from anything mechanical that he'd ever seen, or heard, before. "Is there someone you could call to—ah, shit!" Dean cut himself off as the sound continued to grow louder and louder. The instant before he slapped his hands over his own ears he heard a shout echoing out from the parking lot and it was _then_ that he knew they were in trouble.

The cashier screamed at him as Dean jumped the counter, apparently thinking he was going to rob the place, but silenced when instead of reaching for the register he grabbed her instead and pulled her to the floor. Seconds later the high-pitched hum reached an unbearable level and Dean's body was suddenly the only protection the girl had as the windows of the gas station shattered, along with all the glass bottles and the display cases. The noise was deafening, the cashier doing nothing to help the situation as she let out another scream, and just when Dean didn't think he could physically take anymore without blacking out—it stopped.

The world suddenly seemed so empty as Dean was left only with the sound of his own panting breath and of car alarms going off in the distance. Dazed, confused, and worried as hell, Dean pushed himself up, left the cashier huddled beneath the counter, and stumbled back out of the store, glass crunching under the soles of his shoes as he went. Outside the scene wasn't much better. The cars parked closest to the mini-mart all had their windows shattered, their stunned occupants just beginning to risk moving.

In all the mess, Dean's eyes quickly found the Impala. She was parked just outside the glass-shattering radius but it was obvious that things were still not okay. A small spatter of blood on the pavement near the back of the car caught his gaze and he picked up his pace. Finally he drew close enough to make out what was going on, Dean's heart jumping up into his throat as he did.

Sam looked like he had thrown himself down into the front seats, blood once again dripping from his nose as he gripped his hands tight over his ears, his face drawn up in pain. Cas had abandoned his sandwich and was standing up in a sort of crouch, reaching over the front bench seat with one hand pressed against Sam's shoulder, as if trying to hold him together, his other hand covering up an ear. In contrast, Claire seemed almost oblivious to the other two in the car, her face pressed against the window with her eyes pointed upwards as if entranced.

Cas was the first to acknowledge Dean as he ran up and it only took a glance for him to know that their problems weren't over yet. First things first though. "Cas, is Sam alright?"

Dean's voice seemed to rouse his brother as Dean slipped into the driver's seat. With a low moan, Sammy cautiously pulled his hands away from his ears. "'M alright…"

"Can anyone tell me what the hell that was?"

Nodding as Dean slammed his door shut, Cas ran his hand once more across Sam's shoulder in a soothing motion before sitting back in his seat. "We were being spoken to."

"What?"

Cas eyed the roof of the Impala before he turned his wary gaze back towards Dean. "That sound, it was an angel speaking through their Grace. I never realized how unbearable to the human ear until now…"

Swearing under his breath, Dean helped to push Sammy into an upright position. "That was an angel _speaking_? You think they could've lowered the volume a little bit?" Cas hummed a non-committal response and was obviously distracted. "How the hell are we supposed to know what they were even trying to say?"

"I know what they said."

All eyes turned to Claire, the young girl's gaze finally coming down from the sky. "I could hear their voice."

If anything Castiel went a little paler and Dean knew that Claire being able to understand them—though undoubtedly helpful—wasn't something that was supposed to happen. Other than his skin turning a shade lighter though Cas kept his face unbreakably neutral. "Claire, what did you hear them say?"

The young girl frowned in concern. "He was speaking to you, Daddy. He said his name was Balthazar and he wanted you to know that, he said that they were coming."

Castiel swallowed, his tight as he looked away from his daughter and met Dean's eyes in the rearview mirror. "You should drive."

The look Cas was giving him caused Dean to hold back all of his questions for just a second and instead shift the Impala into reverse. As soon as the car's wheels started to move, turned back to face Claire. "Who did he say was coming?"

"He said 'our brothers are coming'."

Dean swore again as he pulled out of the spot, their car the only one to have recovered enough from the shock of the aural onslaught to move. He still didn't know much about angels but even he knew enough to realize that what had just happened at the gas station hadn't been an attack; it had been a warning. When Claire had first started to explain he had been positive she was about to say that demons were about to land on their asses but no, of course it had to be worse. It had to be freaking angels. Out of the frying pan and into the fire. "I don't suppose finding a set of railroad tracks will help us this time, will it."

"No, no it will not." Cas's tone was sharp as a knife, "Just drive. As fast as you can."

The Impala skidded back up onto the highway as Dean gave her a little gas. He could sense the tension in Cas's voice—a deaf man would've been able to—but; "How fast do I really need to go? On these roads, anything over ninety would just be asking for another car crash."

"Then so be it. At least we would have a chance at survival."

Just as Dean was about to open his mouth to berate Cas for being willing to put Sam and Claire in danger his explanation came in the form of a flash of light in his side-view mirror. At first, it was exactly that, a flash, barely enough to catch Dean's attention. But then, before he even had time to take in a breath, that flash surged into a bright white burst that instantly consumed the gas station they had just left behind them. Acting less like a fire ball and more like a miniature nuclear explosion, even the reflection of the light burned Dean's eyes.

Blinded, he instinctively slammed on the breaks, Sam and Castiel's shouts of alarm and Claire's shrill shriek sharp in his ears. None of them had any time to recover; even though Dean's foot was pressing the brake pedal all the way down to the floorboards, a millisecond later a wave of energy from the explosion slammed into them and sent them careening further down the street. There was a loud screech as rubber was scrapped from the new tires, Dean's knuckles white on the steering wheel as the Impala spun a hundred and eighty degrees.

Out of the corner of his eye Dean saw Sam struggle to brace himself against the dashboard, all of them jerking forward as they hit a curb and roughly bounced back off. The car finally came to the rest in the middle of the street, the hood of the Impala now facing the charred remains of what used to be a gas station. Dean could only stare, his mouth hanging open as he tried to breathe, tried to wrap his mind around the fact that they had just narrowly escaped literal decimation. "What…Cas? Cas, that was—"

"A-an angel touched down." Cas couldn't hide the tremor in his voice this time. Beside him, Sam was shuddering, his head now between his knees, unable to even speak. Dean was sure his eyes were pitch black. When Cas spoke next his voice was nearly a whisper but Dean could still hear him as clear as a bell in the sudden quiet. "Dean, get us out of here. As fast as you can."

Nodding, Dean's hands automatically flew back to the gear shift. If he used his imagination he could almost think that he could make out a lone figure in the distant wreckage slowly rising in the smoke. And even if that figure was real it definitely wasn't human. "Right."

Thankfully the Impala was still running fine, the repairs Dean made on her holding up. For now. If that angel caught sight of them or chased them down Dean was sure that the Impala would protect them about as well as a sheet of tissue paper, regardless of how well he had fixed her up. "Sam, how long until we reach that address Crowley wrote out for us?"

Gritting his teeth, Sam pulled out his smart phone and checked his map. "Ah-It'll still be a couple of hours." Out of the corner of Dean's eye he watched as his brother blinked his own eyes open and closed two, three, four times before the black receded back into Sam's pupil and white and hazel were visible again. "We still have a while to go before we get into New York."

Castiel twisted around in his seat until he was facing the back window, peering back at the destruction left in their wake. "Thankfully I should be less visible than ever now; the single benefit of losing my Grace is that they now have no easy way to track me. And Claire, even if they sense her they may not be able to pinpoint her location. They should not even know you and Sam are here with the sigils on your ribs. If you just keep driving we may be able to slip away."

"Can I outrun them?" Dean had to ask but he seriously doubted it. If they couldn't outrun a dog from Hell it didn't seem likely that they'd be able to outrun a soldier of Heaven.

"No. An angel with his full abilities will be able to fly anywhere in the world with a single thought." Castiel shook his head, "No, we can only hope that they did not feel us escape. Obviously they knew we were at that gas station but if they think that we perished in the blast than that will give us a few moments. They will surely realize their mistake by the time the sun sets."

"You mean when the sun sets _today_?"

Dean didn't even look up, able to feel Castiel's blue eyes boring into him. "Yes, Dean, today."

"Freaking fantastic."

OoOoOo

"Sam, man, I can't drive anymore, you have to take over."

Those had been Dean's words four hours ago when they had been driving somewhere in Pennsylvania. Sam had been wary about even pulling over but Dean had convinced him pretty fast that it needed to happen. All that coffee had been great—for about six hours. Then he had crashed and burned. Not even knowing that they had a full-blown angel on their ass was enough to keep his eyes open.

Dean woke up to find himself slouching over in the back seat with Claire's head resting in his lap, the steady hum of the Impala's motor rumbling through the leather. For a minute he didn't even remember how he had gotten there, the red glow of sunset outside disorienting him further, until he felt a hand on his knee. Following the hand up an arm to a body, Dean relaxed enough to let out a sigh. "Ugh…Cas…Hey."

Right. They had switched seats when Dean had let Sam take over. Jesus…he was still so tired.

"Dean." Castiel's eyes flickered away from Dean's face and down to his daughter who had woken up when Dean had jerked awake. Her head was still in his lap, her blonde hair fanning out over Dean's jeans. For a moment Cas's gaze grew soft, as soft as they could've given the tension of the situation, and his fingers tightened on Dean's knee before slipping away. "Claire. It's a good thing you both woke. We'll be arriving in New York shortly."

Wiping a hand over his face, Dean glanced back out the window to see the electric lights of civilization sparking outside in the dying light. They were definitely getting closer to a big city. "How long was I out for?"

This time Sam spoke, glancing back at Dean in the rearview mirror. "Only a couple of hours, don't worry."

"Anything happen?" Dean knew he shouldn't have passed out like that. Not with everything that was going on, everything that could've gone wrong.

"No, not that I could tell."

Sam looked over to Cas for confirmation which he reluctantly gave. "I can't be certain, but I do not think that they have realized that we did not die at the gas station. Either that, or they know but have not yet found us again. If they knew where we are, we would be dead."

"Well that's a comforting thought."

Sam snorted as Dean gently eased Claire up as she stretched. "I don't know if it helps but we should reach the address Crowley gave us within the hour."

"Actually, it does a bit." But Castiel's timeframe for when the angels would figure them out was bouncing around in Dean's mind and the sun was getting too close to the horizon for comfort. "You good Sam, or do you want me to drive again?" He didn't feel nearly as awake as he should but at least he could actually manage to stay awake.

"I'm fine. No offense but I'd probably be better if I were the one to drive into the city anyway."

Dean gripped about it but didn't argue to hard. He remembered what it was like driving in L.A. and if he could avoid any repeats of that situation he'd be happy to do so.

It turned out to be a good call. As soon as they got within the city limits of New York, New York, it was like the entire population of the eastern seaboard had descended upon the town and was driving in on the same highway they were on. The traffic was bumper to bumper, Dean's eyes stuck on the horizon line that was quickly disappearing behind skyscrapers. The sky was now a solid swath of reds, purples, and ever-darkening navy in the east, the sun all but vanished. In the back seat Claire was getting anxious and so was Dean, both of them beginning to fidget in the growing darkness.

Sam was drumming his fingers on the steering wheel to a staccato beat, his eyes darting around at all the other cars caging them in. They had just a couple blocks to go now, just that little bit further but it seemed like it was almost impossible. It was almost like Fate itself wanted to keep them from finding their wayward archangel and Dean couldn't stop thinking about how much it would fucking suck if an angel swooped down now and smote them seven blocks from their destination.

Cas had Sam's phone in his hands and was reading off directions like they were the activation codes of a nuclear bomb. As they drew closer and closer, block by block, Dean allowed himself the small hope that this was really going to work out. Crowley's directions which, let's face it, had been suspect at best, actually seemed to be leading them towards a promising part of the city, an older, wealthy part of New York that looked like it'd be the sort of place an archangel would want to hang out. The neighborhood wasn't insanely rich but it had a sort of class to it, even though some of the old storefronts along the street were boarded up. More than being where an archangel would stay, it looked like the type of place _Gabriel_ would want to stay, going off of what Castiel had said about him.

"Here, Sam! This is it, on your right!"

Both of the Winchester's gazes snapped over to the right at Cas's exclamation and Dean's eyes locked on a seven-story, turn-of-the-century hotel. With its white marble front and gilded signboard, the _Grand Atlantica_ was the epitome of old-school elegance with just a touch of gaudy. By the painfully hopeful expression on Castiel's face it looked like the perfect place to find an angel.

Dean was jerked back to reality as Sam suddenly swerved to the side, swearing and gripping the seat in front of him as his psychotic younger brother merged straight through two lanes of heavy traffic, made a ridiculously sharp turn, and slammed into the curb in front of the hotel. "_Sam!_ What the hell?"

Barely sparing him a glance, Sam shot back a tight grin as he put the car into park. "We made it didn't we?"

Yeah, yeah they did. And even if it had almost got the Impala into another accident, Sam was right. It was worth it. A sign post said that that curb was reserved for valet parking only but Dean had no intention of staying long enough for it to matter. As Sam turned off the engine, Castiel turned around and leaned over the front bench to look at Claire. "Claire, listen to me very carefully." He was buzzing with renewed energy, determination blazing in his blue eyes. The young girl seemed distracted but her attention was caught by the seriousness in her father's tone. "After everything that has gone wrong, I do not want to leave you here in the car. I want you to come inside with us but you must promise to do exactly as we say. If any of us tell you to do something, you need to do it, understand?"

She nodded, "Yes, Daddy, I understand." And so did Dean. This was it, they were going to finally find Gabriel but that didn't mean they were in the clear yet. Even if he was on their side, he was still freaking powerful—that incident at the gas station had made Dean realize just how powerful—and they were going to need to be careful. Until the moment Gabriel decided to help them Claire was going to still be in danger.

Cas knew that, but he also knew that there was nothing to do but push through it. "Good. Let's get going then."

All four of them piled out of the Impala and, with all of them pretending like they had much more confidence than they actually felt, pushed their way through the hotel's revolving front door and into the lobby. Cas led the way but Dean was right beside him, keeping one hand on Castiel's arm while Claire followed, her grip tight in its usual spot on her father's trench coat. Sam was close behind, his tall form a comforting presence and an insurance that Claire would constantly be in his view.

The lobby was rich, certainly more expensive than anything Dean had ever stepped foot in, and was dominated by a front desk decked out in mahogany, marble, and gold inlay. Only two people were inside, the receptionist and a bell-boy, the latter already hurrying away on business as they came in. As they walked closer, the receptionist's eyes flitted to where Dean had his hand on Cas's arm and offered the three of them a small smile as they drew close. "Are you here to book a room?"

Cas tilted his head, caught off guard by the inquiry, and Dean wasn't much better. His mind was so caught up in what they had come to do that it was hard to switch back to the normal world where people weren't concerned with angels, demons, or being decimated with holy fury. "What?"

"Would you like two rooms or just one with two beds?" She smiled again and it hit Dean that she thought he and Cas were a couple and Sam the awkward third wheel. Which, actually, probably wasn't that far off but it was definitely not the time to be thinking about that. Though after they found Gabriel and got everything straightened out, Dean wouldn't mind booking a room and, whether Cas was human or angel, showing him the best way to celebrate.

"Oh, no, actually, we're here to see someone. Actually, we were hoping you could help us out. He told us this was his hotel but he didn't tell us what room he was in and he has his phone turned off." Castiel glanced over at Dean in surprise as he easily slid into the story. What could he say, he could be a pretty smooth talker when he wanted to be. "Is there any way you could let us know what room he's staying in?"

The woman's red painted lips drew down into a frown. "I'm sorry sir, but I'm afraid I can't divulge that information without explicit permission from our guest."

Dean kept his cool at the rejection. He hadn't been expecting that to work anyway; it just never hurt to try. They'd figure out which room later, first they needed to figure out if Crowley's information was good. "I understand. Could you at least tell us if he's here?"

"I could try. Can you provide a name or description?"

Faltering, Dean turned to Castiel who quickly took over from where he had left off. "His name is Gabriel, um," Right, angel's didn't have last names and Cas apparently didn't know what surname the archangel would choose to use when booking a room. "He's a little shorter than me with light brown hair, brown eyes, and appears to be around thirty-five years of age. At times he may seem like he's glowing."

Dean wanted to hit his head on the counter as the receptionist raised an eyebrow, her manicured nails pausing over her keyboard. There was only so much damage control you could do for that when a large percentage of the sane humans in the world didn't even believe in angels. "He means glowing, you know, with happiness. His wife just had a baby, we're picking him up to go see her at the hospital."

Behind them, Sam had to shush Claire as she giggled at the lie. "Right, well…" The receptionist's fingers clacked on the keyboard for a moment before she looked back up at them. "Without more information, such as a last name, I can't confirm that he has booked a room with us tonight."

"Do you at least recognize him?"

Dean held his breath as she seemed to mull it over. Then she shook her head and his heart stopped in his chest. "No, sir, I don't remember anyone matching that description arriving or leaving our hotel."

"T-thanks. Excuse us for a second."

Forcing himself away from the counter, Dean herded Cas, Claire, and Sam into the corner of the lobby. Cas seemed stunned into silence, his face alarmingly blank but Dean was a little too nervous to be worried about it. "Okay, what do we do now?"

Sam swallowed, keeping his voice low so as not to attract the attention of the receptionist. "We're not completely out of luck yet, right? Just because she didn't notice him doesn't mean he's not here. I mean, her shift could've just started or maybe he's not leaving his room. Hell, maybe he's just flying in and out, I probably would if I were an archangel."

Nodding, Castiel let himself be comforted by Sam's words. "Yes. Yes, maybe, maybe you're right. Maybe if we just walk around the hotel we'll be able to find out which room he's staying in—"

Realization hit Dean like a freight train and he cut Cas off with a sharp cuss word. "Jesus. It's been right in front of us the whole time. Dammit!"

Castiel's eyes snapped to Dean, alarmed at his tone. "What, what is it?"

Dean bit tongue to keep in another curse. "It's Sam."

Now Dean had his brother's full attention, Sam's brow furrowing. "What?"

"How're you feeling, Sam?"

"What? Why does tha—shit."

As understanding spread across both Sam and Castiel's faces, Dean shook his head. "There's no way Gabriel's here, otherwise Sam would be on the floor right now with black eyes and blood pouring out of his nose."

Sam ran his hands through his hair, gripping at the long strands before dropping his arms down to his side "Dammit."

It was the first and probably only time Dean had ever heard his brother sound sad about not experiencing a demonic backlash but he didn't even have the heart to comment. He was way too busy flipping the hell out. "Sammy hasn't even been feelings any effects, right? Doesn't that mean that dick isn't even in this city? Gabriel's a freaking archangel, this be a total demon no-fly zone!"

Castiel could only shake his head as Sam's eyebrows pinched back together. "Do you think Crowley gave us bad information?"

"I think that bastard totally fucked us over, that's what I think."

"—Dean."

"—When I get my hands on that short little hell spawn I'll—"

"—Dean!"

Dean threw his hands into the air, "What, Cas? What is it?"

All of Dean's irritation at having been interrupted flooded out of him as he caught the look on Cas's face. "Where's Claire?"

"What are you talking about, she's right behind—_shit_." The spot behind Castiel where Claire had been was empty. She wasn't next to him, she wasn't next to Sammy, she wasn't anywhere. Spinning around, Dean scanned the rest of the lobby. She couldn't have gotten far; they were distracted for literally five minutes.

"There she is, by the door!"

Sam's sharp eyes spotted had spotted her first but they all ran forward as Claire disappeared through the revolving door with a flutter of her white sun dress. Cas sprinted forward, his eyes wide as he watched his daughter hurry down the sidewalk, forced to wait for his turn to go through the revolving door. "Claire! Claire, stop! _Claire_!"

Dean slammed his fist against the glass door as she disappeared from view. Stupid fucking revolving doors! "Where the hell is she going? This isn't the time for her to be wandering around!" They had moments before the sun fully set, seconds before the angels figured out they were alive, still had demons on their tails, and Heaven and Hell's number one target was walking the streets of New York alone.

"I don't know! She has never willingly left my side before!"

The door finally revolved enough for them to squeeze in. The three of them barely fit in together but none of them were bothered by the close confines, too worried about getting to Claire as fast as possible.

They spilled out onto the sidewalk then took off in the direction they had seen Claire go in. Dean felt like Alice chasing the freaking white rabbit as another flash of Claire's sun dress flicked down an alleyway a building away. Cas dashed after her without a second thought and Dean and Sam were not long after. "Claire! Stop! Stop right where you are!"

With one last burst of speed, Castiel raced ahead of them and around the corner Claire had vanished around. He shocked Dean with his speed and for an instant he would've swore that Cas was flying again as he lost sight of both Novaks.

"Daddy!"

Thank God. Slowing just enough to catch his breath, Dean and Sam rounded the corner in time to see Cas sweeping Claire up into his arms. She was protesting heavily, struggling to get free from her father's grip like something possessed. Dean had never seen her act like this before and Cas seemed equally bewildered, only able to tighten his grip to keep her from falling out. "Claire, please, stop this!"

"No, Daddy, lemme go!"

Dean searched the alleyway, trying to figure out why she had even come down here. There was nothing special about the small passageway. It was just between two brick buildings, one of which looked like it was boarded up. In fact, it looked like Claire was struggling to get to a back door of the building that had been boarded up. What was going on? Shaking his head, Dean walked closer to Cas and Claire, putting a hand on her slim shoulder to try and calm her. "Hey, sweetheart, relax. What's going on, huh? What's inside there?"

She defiantly met his eyes, her lips drawn into a pout as she pushed at her father's arm. "He's in there, Dean! We need to go in!"

Frowning, Castiel adjusted his grip, "He? Do…you mean Gabriel?"

"Yes! Yes, Daddy, please let me go!"

Ever so hesitantly and only after making sure Sam was standing ready to block her path back out to the road, Castiel lowered his daughter back to the ground. Immediately Claire ran over to the dingy old door in the side of the brick wall. There was a large padlock on it and Dean was about to tell her not to bother but before he could even open his mouth she tugged on the handle and the door fell open.

Dean, Sam, and Cas looked on in surprise, much to her apparent irritation. Swinging around, the seven-year-old put one hand on her hip and pointed with her other into the darkness of the old building. "Daddy! Dean, Uncle Sammy! This way, come this way!"

Shaking himself out of his stupor, Dean checked over at Cas, looked over at Sam, then shrugged his shoulders. What the hell; it wasn't like they had any better leads than this and if there was even half a percent of a chance that Claire could find Gabriel than they might as well go for it. Sam seemed to feel the same. Eyeing the darkness inside the building, he reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small flashlight. "I guess you're gonna need this, Dean."

"You're such a Boy Scout."

"Shut up."

Dean almost smiled as he accepted the flashlight, motioning for Claire to move behind him before stepping inside the timeworn building.

He crept in slowly, his right hand outstretched to knock down cobwebs and the flashlight in his left. He could feel Cas behind him, the former angel's body heat radiating off and onto his back. Dean wanted Castiel to stay behind him, just in case it turned out that this was just some giant trap, that Gabriel had once again flown the coop and Raphael was waiting inside. With Sam bringing up the rear again he was pretty sure that they would be alright but if it was the last thing he did Dean was going to make sure that Cas made it back out to Claire in one piece.

The further he pushed into the old building, the more he began to realize just what he had walked into. Once the door to the alleyway closed behind them it was impossible to see anything beyond the beam of his flashlight but what he did see said a lot. A couple of old boxes stacked up and rotting against the wall, a broken popcorn machine: they were in an old movie theatre and it had definitely seen better days.

The inside of the theatre was dark and covered in dust, the velvet, leather, and wood peeling and cracking from age. It felt like there were eyes on him, watching each and every move and a part of Dean's mind wondered if it was the presence of an archangel or if the old stage was haunted. It definitely seemed like a place that _could_ be haunted. That was the last thing they needed, to be jumped by a ghost.

The silence was pressing so when a light noise reached his ears it really stuck out. The sound was light, lilting, hard to pin down, but as they continued to push forward through the dust and shadows Dean was finally able to identify it as the sound of voices and…laughter?

The decaying hall they were walking through emptied out into the back of an enormous theater. Dean's eyes widened, the flashlight dangling loose in his fingers, as his view was suddenly filled by a wide screen where an old B-rated black and white horror movie was playing, the soundtrack echoing around the room with a haunting surround-sound that wouldn't have even been possible when this movie theatre was actually open.

The scene was so strange, so unexpected, it took Dean a few moments to realize that exactly one of the hundreds of frayed velvet seats was filled. There as a lone man sitting in the third row, his shoes kicked up onto the seat in front of him. Every once and a while he would let out a small chuckle at a cheesy line or terrible special effect and Dean jumped each time as laughter rumbled up from the rest of the empty seats in response, sounding like a laugh track in an old sit-com.

Dean didn't notice that he had frozen in his steps until he felt Claire slip around both him and Castiel and almost skip down the aisle. Swallowing, Dean felt Castiel press up against his back and tilted his chin back. "Is that…?"

He felt Cas nod and let out a long, shuddering breath. "…I think it is…"

"Right."

So, that was an archangel. Gabriel didn't seem to notice Claire standing down the aisle next to him but as soon as Dean, Cas, and Sam started to walk towards the front of the theatre he turned his head to look back over his shoulder. As soon as his golden eyes locked onto them, the volume on the big screen went dead silent.

"Hey, bro! What took you so long?"

Dean stopped at the sudden change, Castiel taking one more step so that he was blocking Dean slightly from the archangel's view as he slowly rose to his feet. Unlike Balthazar and Zachariah, Dean couldn't sense anything out of the ordinary from the smirking man rising to his feet. No aura, no hum of power. He didn't even look all that impressive; short, with auburn hair swept back, and dressed in what looked like a silk bathrobe he didn't exactly look how Dean imagined an archangel would.

Gabriel faltered then steeled himself. "Gabriel. It…is good to see you're well."

"_You're_ Gabriel?"

Dean must've had a pretty stupid expression on his face because it earned a snort from the angel. "That's right."

"I was expecting something…different."

Gabriel's gaze sharpened almost imperceptively and he walked out from all the chairs and into the aisle, patting Claire on the head as he passed by her. Dean saw Castiel tense up as the archangel's hand fell on his daughter but didn't say a thing. "Never presume to know who I am. Besides, I couldn't very well show up without masking some of my awesomeness. I knew you had a sensitive plus-one with you." Grinning, his gaze danced over to Sam, his smirk growing as he took the younger Winchester in. "How're you feeling, Sammy?"

A wave of protective worry flared up inside of Dean but he followed Cas's lead and stomped it out. Sam was okay, just answering a question. "Uh, fine, actually. How are you—?"

"See?" Gabriel shrugged, "I'm a nice guy." And pretty damn powerful if he was actually able to shield his presence from them. "Though I have to say you reek like Luci's old gym socks. What are you, second generation demon?"

Sam shifted and Dean felt every ounce of his discomfort. He didn't like the angel focusing on his brother. "Third, actually. And I'm only half."

"Oh, that's why you smell stale. Still, not too bad looking, considering."

Castiel seemed to run out of patience as Gabriel waggled his brows at the younger Winchester. "Gabriel, please, I require your full attention, just for a few moments."

Rolling his eyes, Gabriel pulled his eyes from Sam and turned them back on his own brother. "Oh, yes, Castiel. I've been hearing a lot about you. Raph's about ready to blow a gasket, you know. He told me that if I found you I should kill you on sight." Castiel's jaw clenched and Dean wished there was something he could do to make this easier. "So much for being the patron saint of healing, am I right?"

Snorting, Dean couldn't stay quiet any longer. "If he's the patron saint of healing, what are you? The patron of douchebaggery?"

Gabriel didn't take the remark well. A dark cloud seemed to settle over his features and finally Dean began to get that archangel vibe from him. "Messengers, actually. So _listen to me, asshole,_ because I have a message for you. Castiel, Claire Novak, Dean Winchester, Samuel Winchester, you have accrued the full wrath of Heaven through your sacrilegious actions. I could smite you where you stand with the blink of my eye, yourself included Castiel. You should show me more _respect_."

The air itself seemed to vibrate around the angel and Dean had to fight to keep from turning tail and running right back the way they came. Seeing Cas stand firm in front of him kept him in place. "I understand the danger you present very well, Gabriel, and yet I must ask this of you."

Gabriel tilted his head and for a minute Dean could almost see a genuine family resemblance between him and Cas. "What _is_ it that you want from me, Castiel?"

This is the moment they had been waiting for. "You must protect my daughter from Raphael and all else who wish to harm her."

"I 'must' not do anything. You realize what you're asking of me?"

"Yes."

Gabriel snorted, "Do you? Raphael will have my head for this and if Michael ever gets word of it he won't be finished with his lecture 'til Judgment Day. I'm already on his shit list for that whole Loki thing. And the following Trickster thing. That guy just can't take a joke."

This wasn't the way they had been hoping the conversation would go."You are strong enough to fend them off."

"Maybe. Depends what kind of mood they're in." The archangel glanced back at where Clare was now hovering anxiously by one of the velvet seats. "I also don't know if I want to strap myself to a Nephilim for the next fifty to a hundred years just to cover up the mistake of a low ranking screw-up."

"Hey-!" Dean jerked forward at that, Cas actually having to put an arm out to keep him from going after him.

Cas didn't take it lying down though and narrowed his eyes. "That was cruel, Gabriel. Of all the archangels, you should understand that what I chose to do and what I continue to do is no mistake."

"That depends on your point of view, doesn't it?" When Castiel's gaze didn't waver, Gabriel let out an exaggerated sigh. "Listen, Cassie. If I could do whatever I wanted, I'd help ya out, I would, but I just don't have that kind of time to start anything with Raph right now."

"Gabriel, you need to understand. Raphael is coming as we speak and once he finds us, Claire will—"

"I know he's coming. I can hear him." Gabriel interrupted and tapped his forehead. "He figured you out two hours ago and by the sounds of it he'll have your daughter's position pinpointed in about thirty minutes. At least you won't have too long to wait, right?"

Castiel's face must've gone pale and it seemed to strike something in the archangel's heart. "How 'bout this?" strolling up the aisle to Cas, Gabriel crossed his arms over his chest, "since I'm _such_ a nice guy, I'll give you a little parting gift." Uncrossing his arms, the archangel smiled then reached up and snapped his fingers.

The result was instantaneous as Cas jerked forward with a sharp gasp like he had been punched to in the gut. Sam flinched, effected by even the smallest show of power from the archangel and from down the aisle Claire let out a little scream and ran for them as her father stumbled back. Lurching forward, Dean wrapped his arms tight around Castiel's chest as the other's knees gave out from underneath him. "What the hell did you do to him?"

"Daddy?" Claire pushed past Gabriel and rushed to Castiel's side. He sucked in a shuddering breath as she grabbed his hand, trying to get back to his feet. "Daddy, are you alright?"

Gabriel rolled his eyes. "Would you guys stop freaking out? Jeez, I _said_ it was a gift didn't I? He's fine, better than fine actually."

Dean growled as his grip tightened protectively around Cas. "Bullshit! If you've hurt him, I swear to God I'll—"

"Dean, Claire…I'm alright." Castiel's soft murmur broke through Dean's rage. Slowly Castiel pulled himself from Dean's embrace, Gabriel looking on appraisingly.

"Are you sure? You seemed to take a pretty good hit."

"No…I, ah," Castiel's eyes widened and before Dean could ask what was wrong, he took a step forward and arched his back, a low groan of relief falling from his lips as there was a flash of black and two large midnight-colored wings unfurled. Jesus Christ. Cas had his wings back. He was an angel again.

"Those…are bigger than I remember."

Castiel flexed them once, the feathers rippling out as the appendages stretched out to their full length, then, with a rustle, they were gone again. Gabriel smiled a smug little grin. "There we go, back to normal."

Dean watched as Castiel blinked, his ethereal blue eyes now electric, and realized that even he had never seen Cas at what would be considered a "normal" level of power for an angel. Aside from his eyes, he seemed inexplicably stronger, and there was a renewed glow to his skin. It was like what Castiel had been a moment ago had just been a shadow and now had been brought back to life. But even though Dean and Sam were both staring at him in awe, Castiel himself still didn't seem pleased.

"This…This is all you will do for us, Gabriel?"

"What I'm sure you meant to say was 'Gee, thanks big bro! You're the best!'"

"Gabriel," Castiel's fists tightened, "The amount of energy it took to do this was nothing to you. I…" His voice trailed off as he collected himself, trying again. "I have never asked anything from you, brother. Never. I supported you when few of the others would, spoke to Michael on your behalf when you became the Trickster, to _Raphael_ when you refused to come back until your demands were met. I have never disobeyed you, not you, because I have always believed that you were the most understanding of all the archangels. Now I have come to you, tired and hunted, asking you to do one thing for me in return: please, _please_, take my daughter under your wing. Leave me to deal with whatever happens on my own but protect Claire from Raphael's wrath. Please."

Throughout Castiel's whole speech Gabe and sighed and put his hands on his hips. "I can't do that."

"You _can_."

"Fine, I _won't_."

"_Gabriel—_"

"No, Cassie." Gabriel almost managed to sound empathetic. "You asked the one thing of me that I can't do. I've already talked to him about this; Raphael has made up his mind. Since the moment you decided to propagate with that human woman you knew that this would be the result. It has to be this way, it's always had to be this way. Now you just have to suck it up and take your just deserts."

For a second Dean was pretty sure that Cas was going to sock the archangel right in the face and right then Dean was pretty sure that he would've joined right in. But Castiel held himself back, just barely and after a moment of struggling to find his voice, turned on his heels and rushed from the theatre, back into the hall they had come in through.

Gritting his teeth, Dean looked over his shoulder just long enough to spit an insult back at Gabriel, nothing but disappointment and contempt in his narrowed eyes. "Fucking coward."

As soon as the words left his mouth he was out and running after Castiel, leaving Sam alone with Claire and the archangel. Even the usually diplomatic Winchester brother could barely keep his own emotions back. Especially when Gabriel wiggled his brows at him again as Sam moved to grab Claire's hand in his. "You know, if you thought Cassie's pair of wings was impressive, you should see mine. Mine's much _bigger_, if you know what I mean."

Sam scowled at him, unable to believe that the being was still able to crack a joke at a time like this. "Dean's right. You're a dick."

"Compliments will get you everywhere, demon boy."

OoOoOo

Racing outside after Castiel, Dean stopped short as he burst back out into the alleyway. Night had fallen now, but even in the darkness he could still make Castiel out as he stalked a few feet away as the streetlights from the main road cast a sickly yellow light and long shadows into the alley, his body taunt with anger.

Dean could only stand back and watch as Cas released a cry of strangled cry of rage, the angel's fingers clenching before he spun around and slammed his fist into the brick wall. The masonry cracked like it was made of plywood, buckling in from the blow, and Cas eyed the crater left behind in disgust as his hand slid away. Cas's chest was heaving, sucking in shallow little gasps of air but his rage seemed to dissipate as quickly as it had come, replaced instead with a devastated sort of hopelessness that made Dean's heart ache.

He finally pushed himself to move as Cas slumped back against the wall he had just damaged, his head falling into his hands. When he spoke, Dean kept his voice soft, barely a whisper. "Cas, hey…Castiel, calm down." The angel's eyes squeezed shut as Dean's hands found his face. "It'll be alright."

"No, Dean…" Moving his own hands down to cover Dean's, Castiel shook his head, his fingers trembling as they pressed down over Dean's. "It won't be."

Dean swallowed, willing to say anything just to shake that desolation from Cas's voice. "Hey, Cas, look at me." Reluctantly the angel forced his eyes open, his lips pressed into a thin line. "Listen to me. We've gotten through worse things than this. Who gives a shit about what that son of a bitch had to say? We'll figure something out."

"Dean," His name slipped from Castiel's lips like the angel was in pain, "There is nothing else. Gabriel was my last hope. I've tried everything, everything I could think of before we even met." Drawing in a shuddering breath, Castiel shook his head again. "I've waited years to meet him but in all that time I never even let myself imagine that he would refuse."

"But he gave you your mojo back, right?" Dean's eyes flew to the small crater in the brick wall beside Cas's head. "Now that you've gotten your power back, can't we work something out?"

"I could protect Claire for a few months, maybe a year, but this power too will fade and our enemies will only continue to grow as she becomes stronger…Even if I give my life to save hers…She won't last long enough to see her tenth birthday."

"Don't talk like that. You, me, and Sammy, we'll make this work somehow."

Castiel smiled ruefully and the expression made Dean sick to his stomach. "I wish I could have your optimism, Dean."

"Hey, come here." As Dean leaned in Castiel closed his eyes and lifted his chin just enough to receive the gentle kiss Dean pressed against his lips. His skin was cold and still trembling lightly under Dean's touch. "I'm not gonna let anything happen to you, either of you, you hear me?"

Cas's hand came up to rest on Dean's cheek, his fingertips running over the stubble beginning to show up along Dean's jawline. "Dean…If Raphael comes for us there will be nothing you could do to stop him."

"Then I'll go down swinging."

A short burst of air huffed from Castiel's lips and he pushed himself up for another kiss. Dean grunted lightly, his hands slipping out to rest on Cas's waist. He gave himself into the feeling, just for a second, and hoped that Castiel was doing the same. God knew that the angel could use even just a second-long break. When he felt Cas's muscles tense under his palms though he knew that break time was over. Reluctantly Dean pulled away, nosing at the five o' clock shadow on Cas's own cheek. "What is it?"

"Sam's bringing Claire outside. I can sense them both now."

"Right…" Pressing one last kiss against Castiel's forehead, Dean stepped back just in time as Sam and Claire emerged out of the old theatre. He was sure Sam knew what they had been up to but at least this way he wouldn't have to bitch about having to watch. "What's up, Sammy?"

"Gabriel disappeared."

That caught both Dean and Cas's attention. "_What_?"

Sam looked nervous, scared, his hand tight on Claire's. "He said Raphael was coming, now, and then he just snapped his fingers and vanished. Did he really mean it? Do you think Raphael's on his way here?"

Dean and Cas looked at each other before Castiel sighed. It was time to face the inevitable. "Probably, yes."

Sam's face fell. Dean didn't know how much Claire knew or didn't know about the sort of threat Raphael posed but even the little girl went pale as Sam pulled himself together enough to get out another question. "So, what's the plan?"

"To do whatever we must to survive."

It wasn't a real answer but Dean was happy to hear it all the same. At least Castiel hadn't given up. Now it was his job to make sure the angel never did. "Do we have any way to fight against him? Bobby didn't have anything for us but I don't suppose you know where we could get some of that holy oil crap that they used the Roadhouse down?"

"No, I'm not aware of a location where we could acquire enough oil, not in enough time to matter anyway." Castiel's gaze flashed over each of them in turn, "Claire, Sam, the two of you will be the most at risk when Raphael arrives and will have the lowest chance of survival. He is actively chasing after Claire and Sam, you will undoubtedly be incapacitated as soon as he touches down and thus open for attack. It would be best, therefore, if we separate."

Dean straightened up beside Cas as Sammy narrowed his eyes. "Wait, you don't mean—"

Nodding, Castiel continued as if he had never been interrupted. "Dean and I will distract Raphael while the two of you escape. Sam, you must promise me that you will stay with Claire at all times until I am able to return for her. If I do not return…please do what you can for her. I apologize Dean, but I will need your help. It's likely they will use sigils or my natural weaknesses against me that you would not be affected by."

"That's fine Cas, I wouldn't let you stay out here alone anyway."

"Wait a damn minute!" Sam all but stomped his foot as he threw a mini bitch fit. "I'm not leaving either of you behind!"

Claire finally seemed to notice just what they were talking about and her eyes went wide. "No, Daddy, Dean, you gotta come with us!"

Dean could see the pain in Castiel's eyes as his daughter's plea and quickly knelt down so that he was eye to eye with the seven year old. He knew as well as the angel did that this was the best chance both Sam and Claire had of surviving this and they didn't have much time to argue about it. "Don't worry, Claire, we'll be back before you miss us. Until we get back though, you gotta promise me you'll be good for your Uncle Sammy. Do whatever he says and you make sure he takes care of himself for me, okay?"

"_Dean_." Sam's sharp voice drew Dean back up to his feet. "You can't do this. Don't do this to me."

"Sorry Sammy. I got no choice."

"Of course you have a choice, there's always a choice Dean!"

"Not this time." Reaching his hand into his pocket, Dean fished out the keys to the Impala and tossed them towards his brother. "Take care of her for me."

Sam caught the set of keys like it was a poisonous snake before glaring at Dean, betrayal but mostly fear filling his eyes. He was still staring Dean down when Castiel's head suddenly snapped up to gaze at the black sky overhead, the angel's own eyes razor sharp. "He's coming! Raphael's almost here. Go Sam, now!"

"But-!"

"No, Daddy!"

"_Go!_" Sam reeled back as Cas's powers flared, the look in the angel's eyes so fierce that he could only keep stumbling back.

Claire looked up at him then back at her father, her face torn. "Daddy? You're coming too, right? Daddy?"

"Don't worry, Claire." Castiel could barely relax his expression even for his little girl, "Go with Sam. We will all be together soon." Dean held back a shiver, Cas's words hanging in the air between them like an ominous promise. One way or another, they probably would.

But Sam finally seemed to get the message and after another sharp look from Cas gently tugged on Claire's hand, pulling her out towards the street. Dean watched them go with mixed feelings, trying to convince himself that they were doing the right thing. But when he felt Castiel's hand on his shoulder he knew that either way they had made their choice and now they were going to stick with it.

At least Sam and Claire had a chance.

"So...What now, Cas?"

"Now we turn ourselves into bait."

"Yeah?" Dean turned to face Castiel to find the angel watching him closely. "And how are we going to do that?"

"By doing this." Before Dean had time to ask any more questions, a wave of energy seemed to burst from Castiel and his wings unfurled again, the black feathers shimmering in the yellowed light. The muscles in his back shifted as he turned his gaze back to the sky, something that looked almost like a mirthlessly wry smirk slipping onto his lips. "I have been hiding my true nature for months now, trying to avoid his attention. It feels nice to stretch my wings again. Once he arrives we will run, the farther, the better. The longer we can distract him and the farther we lure him away, the more likely it will be that Claire and your brother will be able to get away."

A sort of resignation spread through Dean's veins and he allowed himself to take in the sight of the angel. No point in letting inhibitions stand in the way now. "Well if this is it for us at least I get to see you at your full-power before I die. It's a pretty big turn-on by the way."

"If we survive this and by some miracle are able to return safely to Sam and Claire I would like very much for us to have sex, Dean."

Dean had to laugh. Castiel's expression hadn't changed the entire time he said that. "Yeah, you got it, Cas. However you want it."

"Thank you." Cas didn't seem to understand the absurdity of the situation like Dean did but it was probably for the best. At least one of them was still paying attention.

"He's here."

Dean opened his mouth to ask where the other archangel was but that question was answered by a sudden flash. Jumping back as a freaking bolt of lightning struck down literally feet from where he and Castiel was standing, Dean was once again blinded, the hair on the back of his neck standing straight up as the air suddenly became electrified.

He felt Castiel's arm wrapped around him and immediately moved closer as from the light emerged a figure, the lightning warping around him to form freaking wings. And Dean knew; _this_ was Raphael and he was here to kill them.

A couple of heartbeats later the light receded enough for Dean to make out the archangel's features. He had dark skin, a powerful body underneath a pressed suit, and piercing brown eyes. Like Gabriel the air seemed to hum around him and when he spoke his voice was like a low roll of thunder. "Castiel. Finally you have made yourself known to us. Have you given up?"

"Not quite."

Before Dean knew what was happening, the arm Cas had around Dean's back tightened around him and with a powerful flap of Castiel's wings they were suddenly being propelled into the air. When Cas said that they were going to run, he thought he'd meant run, not, not this! "What? No, hey, wait a minute!"

"I'm sorry, Dean. Hang on."

Dean instantly began to panic, his flying phobia kicking in full-force as air rushed by him. His feet were off the ground, they were actually, literally off the ground and holy crap they were already like a hundred feet up in the air. Think happy thoughts, happy, calming thoughts and fuck it wasn't working! Cold sweat beaded up on Dean's forehead and he gripped tight onto Castiel's shoulders, throwing his pride to the wind as he tucked his face against Castel's chest. "Oh my God. Oh my fucking God!"

"Relax, Dean, I've got you. I won't let you fall."

Oh, yeah, that was comforting. Castiel was two inches shorter and about twenty pounds lighter than him and Dean was supposed to trust that he could hold his weight? It didn't matter that Cas had angelic strength, didn't matter that Cas's arms felt as strong as steel wrapped behind and underneath him; it didn't feel secure! The air was whipping around him so fast Dean couldn't even begin to imagine how high they had flown now, too scared to even peek. This was so not okay! "Don't you dare drop me!"

"I swear on my life that I will not drop you. Now hold on, Raphael is right behind us, I need to go faster!"

"Oh _fuck_!"


	9. Chapter 9

So…yeah. Long wait was a long wait. I apologize the most to those few of you who read and/or review regularly. You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, in a world darkened by mounds and mounds of schoolwork. For real, homework is getting crazy nuts, even for me; writing a Master's Thesis ain't easy. Special thanks to those who reviewed for the last chapter: Wol Lo, egyptian1995, supreme dramon, a-chan, ramen-is-my-goddess, and hdkwj! I'm planning one more, epilogue chapter after this but this is the main meat of the ending so I hope you dudes enjoy it!

O

* * *

><p>Chapter 9<p>

* * *

><p>Sam's ears were filled with the sound of his own heart pounding in his chest as he grabbed hold tight of Claire's hand and ran. He didn't want to leave Dean, or Cas for that matter, alone to fight whatever was coming for them but he also knew that he'd be useless in a fight against an archangel thanks to the demon blood pumping through his veins. It was the hardest thing he'd ever done in his life—leaving them behind—but they were expecting him to make sure Claire at least got out alive. He was going to get her somewhere safe if it was the last thing he did.<p>

He ran towards the safest place he knew of: the Impala. Luckily she was still right where they left her in front of the hotel next door, the valet service not even having the time to ticket them for parking there illegally. There wasn't a snowball's chance in Hell that they'd be able to drive out of the city before Raphael got here but maybe they could make it out of New York before whatever came next arrived. Unlocking the door with shaking fingers, Sam made sure that Claire was seat-belted into the passenger's seat before scooting over to the driver's side. At her age, Claire really should've been in the back seat but Sam wanted her up as close to him as possible for whatever happened next.

Shoving the keys into the ignition, Sam's fingers had just found the parking break when a sudden, searing pain burned through him. His vision swam as he felt his eyes shift, the feeling so intense that he actually blacked out for half a second. Coming to with his face pressed against the steering wheel, he tried to gasp for air, tried to ignore the sensation of a thousand red-hot needles poking into his skin.

It hurt, it hurt so freaking bad. Somewhere in the back of his mind he heard Claire yelling, felt her hands on his arm, but then the pain doubled and Sam choked as he felt his throat tighten up, his heart beating so fast it felt like it was going to explode. He must've blacked out again—thank God—because the next thing he knew he was gasping again, coughing as he was finally able to pull air down into his lungs.

The burning sensation had suddenly abated though his skin was still stinging from the memory of it all. Trying to get a hold of himself, Sam sucked in deep breaths, wincing as he felt something wet roll down his chin and drip down onto his pant legs. Something red and thick—blood.

"Uncle Sammy!"

His brain couldn't even acknowledge Claire's cry, his whole body still reeling from the after effects of the sudden attack. It had felt like he had been dropped into a vat of acid, something deep in his core hissing and writhing, trying to force its way to the surface and out even if it meant destroying him in the process. Anything to get away.

"Uncle Sammy? Sam, are you alright? Please!"

Sam shook his head, then realized what a mistake the motion had been and gripped at his forehead to try and soothe the ache back down. Belatedly noticing that he still owed Claire a response, Sam grit his teeth and forced out some words that he hoped were coming out in the right order. "I'm…I'll, be okay. Just…A minute. Give me a minute."

That had been…bad. Really bad. Ten times worse than how it had felt when he had first met Cas and about twice as painful as when he had gotten too close to Gabriel's place in L.A. There was only one thing it could've been: an archangel. It had to have been Raphael. No wonder no demons could stand being even in the same city as an archangel. Sam couldn't even imagine what would've happened if he had been a full demon, not just half. But if the feeling was already beginning to fade then that meant that Dean and Cas must've actually been able to lure him away. "How long was I out for?"

Claire's eyes widened further, "You were 'out'? Are you really okay?"

Good. It couldn't have been that long then if Claire hadn't even realized it, maybe only a couple of seconds. "I will be."

Shaking his head once more, this time with fewer negative repercussions, Sam took a deep breath and made a second attempt to grab the parking break. This time his body worked like it was supposed to and he put the Impala into drive and peeled off of the curb back into the New York traffic. There was no way he should be driving immediately after having an attack like that but there was no way he was going to just sit around until he fully recovered.

The other cars around him were in a panic, stopping and going bumper to bumper as they went down the block. Even inside the Impala Sam could hear them yelling something to each other about lightning striking down; again, it had to be Raphael. Probably happened when he had blacked out. "Was there lightning?"

Claire nodded in his peripheral vision as he began to wind them through the mass of cars. "Yeah, down in the alley. Do you think Daddy and Dean are alright?"

"I'm sure they are." They had to be. Sam wouldn't even let himself consider the fact that they could've just been killed. Logically, it was a very real possibility but, no, it couldn't have happened. It just couldn't have. They had to be alright.

Claire twisted around in her seat so that her face was pressed against the window pane, straining against her seat belt to look behind them toward the theatre. "Uncle Sammy, can't we go back and get them?"

"No." Though Sam would give anything to do just that. "They, they wouldn't be able to take care of themselves if they had to worry about us."

To his surprise she didn't question his explanation but just accepted it as if she understood. Dragging herself away from the window, Claire settled herself back into her seat, grabbing anxiously at her seatbelt. "Where are we going then?"

Now that was a good thing to question. Sam hadn't really given it much thought, his only goal to get as far away as fast as possible. Because of that he had started driving west because, well, you could drive a lot further west than you could east coming out of New York, but now that she mentioned it…Sam wracked his brain for somewhere they could go and hide away until Dean and Cas hopefully found them again. He didn't know how long it would take them to escape—because he wouldn't let himself consider that they might not be able to—but it was key that he found them both somewhere safe to stay. And considering what was coming after them, that wasn't going to be easy. But now that he thought about that, one place did come to mind. "We'll go back to Bobby's. He'll know what to do."

Claire nodded shakily and, after a moment of hesitation, Sam reached over and set a comforting hand on her shoulder. The Nephilim flinched at the touch but before Sam had time to pull away she reached up and snagged his hand and snuggled up against it like it was a teddy bear. Despite the tension still in his fingers gripping the steering wheel, Sam's expression softened at the seven-year-old's obvious distress. "It'll be okay. Dean will keep Cas safe and your dad will keep Dean safe. And I'll keep you safe, I promise."

Her grasp tightened around his arm and she nuzzled into his shoulder. "…I'm scared for my Daddy, Sam. He's, he's the only person I have."

Sam's heart right about broke when he heard that. "Hey," Sam let out a breath as he heard her sniffle. Please don't cry, please don't cry. "Like I said before, Dean will take care of your dad. And, no matter what happens," if neither of them made it back, "I promise I'll take care of you. I won't leave you alone." And Sam meant it. If the worst happened he owed it to Cas and Dean, _and_ Claire, to protect her.

"Thank you…"

Maybe it would've been easier to drive with both hands but Sam didn't have the heart to pull his arm away from Claire. The idea that he was pretty much the only thing keeping her from danger was kind of…crushing but he knew he had to do it.

It felt strange heading out of New York on the same road they had come in on, but Sam didn't let that running-in-circles feeling discourage him as he sped towards Highway 80. A minute passed, then five, and ten, and when twenty minutes passed as they began to leave the bustle of the big city behind them. He was beginning to think that maybe, just maybe, they had finally managed to out-run the angels.

Of course, he had forgotten about the demons.

They had just driven past a scatter of old industrial buildings and empty lots when a commotion up ahead caught his attention. There were a few cars ahead of them blocking his view of whatever was going on but he knew it wasn't something normal as the traffic slid to a stop. Not trusting anything abnormal, Sam tensed back up, the movement not going unnoticed by Claire.

"What is it?"

"Probably nothing. Just stay—" Sam cut himself off as traffic slowly moved forward ahead of them, car by car, until they got close enough that he could see what was really going on. There was some sort of road-block up ahead with two cars turned sideways perpendicular to the flow of traffic with just enough space between them for a single vehicle to sneak through at a time. There were a few people standing out in front of the cars giving off the vibe of law enforcement, like it was some sort of checkpoint. Sam almost bought it, until he caught sight of a woman leaning on the hood of one of the cars. It was that brunette demon from Chicago and she was looking straight at them.

Shit.

Freeing his second hand from Claire's grasp, Sam gripped the wheel and spun it hard to the right. Claire screamed as the car careened off of the road and onto the sidewalk, Sam narrowly steering them by light poles and a fire hydrant and out towards one of the open lots. The Impala was too wide to actually fit and they skid into an empty lot as Sam tried to circumnavigate the demons' barricade.

They seemed to have anticipated the move though and one of the cars barreled off of the road to block their path. Swearing, Sam jerked the wheel hard in the other direction, trying to get back onto the pavement but the second car zoomed in to cut him off. With his escape routes eliminated Sam went in the only direction left open to him and threw the car into reverse, the tires kicking up mud and grass as they peeled further back into the empty lot.

"_Uncle Sammy!_"

Sam flung out an arm to keep Claire from hitting her head against the dashboard as he made another sharp turn. "Damn it! Hang on!"

They were surrounded. By like a dozen demons. And this time Sam was the only one here to fight. Crap.

He needed to be smart about this; otherwise they'd both be dead. He could use his powers to take care of some of the demons but there was only so much he could do in one sitting. What he needed were the weapons currently sitting in the Impala's trunk. That, and they probably needed to find a better place to be to survive whatever confrontation was about to go down. "Alright. Claire, listen to me closely." In the lot next to the one they were in was an old, neglected warehouse. The concrete walls were cracked and the windows were all broken but it would still hold up better to an onslaught than the Impala. Sam swallowed and watched warily as the demons began to pile out of their cars and slink closer. "As soon as I move, you open your door and run as fast as you can to that warehouse behind us. Can you do that?"

"I, I don't—"

"_Claire_." He didn't mean to be sharp with her but this was kind of an emergency. They didn't have time to hesitate.

The little girl flinched away from him then nodded, her eyes tearing up. "Y-yes, okay!"

"Good." Sam's eyes never left the approaching demons as he leaned forward and turned off the car. There was only about twenty yards of open space separating the hood of the Impala and the small horde coming at them, which would give them just enough time to do what needed to happen. "On the count of three you're going to run as fast as you can to the warehouse. Don't wait for me, just get inside and stay there. I'll be right behind you."

"No, _Sam_!"

He ignored her. She was too young for something like this but she was just going to have to find the strength to do this. "One." Claire whimpered. "Two." Gripping his door handle, Sam checked to see that Claire was doing the same. She was, though her hands were shaking. "Three."

As soon as the word left his mouth, Sam threw his door open and heard Claire do the same on her side of the car. He heard a shout from one of the demons but didn't quite catch its words as he slammed the door back shut and sprinted for the trunk. Sam heard Claire race away behind him as he ripped the trunk open, quickly grabbing the shotgun, not having the time to pull on gloves to grab the iron bar or bothering to grab the nearly empty gallon jug of holy water.

Sam whipped his head up as he heard something approaching fast from his right. Expecting it to be Claire, the reproach on the tip of his tongue morphed into a strangled shout as a demon rushed at him, black eyes glaring. He didn't think to raise the gun gripped in one hand, just acted on instinct and raised his other hand, stretching his fingers out towards his would-be attacker. Reaching out with his mind, Sam felt his blood heat in his veins as he forced his will out onto the demon.

It took him only two seconds to bring the hell spawn to its knees, his abilities running strong thanks to all the adrenaline shooting through him. That was still too much wasted time though and that slight delay gave the other demons the chance they needed to catch up. Knowing that he would be quickly outmatched if he stuck around, Sam broke away before he was actually able to exorcise the demon, shut the Impala's trunk, and fled back towards the warehouse he really hoped Claire was hiding in.

He could hear the demons chasing after him, his longer stride and the slight boost in speed he got from his own demonic blood the only thing saving him from getting caught right then and there. Spotting a door left open just a crack along one of the warehouses side-walls, Sam ran for it.

Bursting inside, Sam's heart jumped in his chest as Claire let out a little shriek. Once she realized just who had come in though she was across the room with her arms wrapped around Sam's waist. "Uncle Sammy, I thought you weren't going to come!"

"I promised I'd take care of you and I will." Sam reached over the little girl as he barricaded the door behind him before checking the shotgun to make sure it was loaded. He would've pushed her away but thanks to her small stature she actually wasn't that much of a hindrance and, more importantly, the closer she was the better he could protect her.

Just as he had clicked the shotgun back together a loud bang on the door made Sam jump back, further into the warehouse and dragging Claire with him. Sam's arms and shoulders tensed as he immediately brought the gun up and aimed it at the closed door. "Stay back! I'm warning you, the first thing that comes through that door is going to get blown right back to Hell!"

The banging quieted at the threat, but the demons' hesitation didn't last long. Sam's brows drew together as the noise was replaced a minute later by a voice, loud and mocking as it echoed through the door. "Well, if it isn't Sammy Winchester. Where's your keeper and his has-been angelic fuck-buddy?"

He recognized that voice. It was that female demon that had cornered Cas and Claire in the streets near Crowley's place. Sam didn't even question how she knew his name. Demons had all kinds of ways to figure out what you were thinking and just what your weaknesses were. "I remember you from Chicago!"

A snort sounded through the door. "Oh good, you can remember back to this morning. And here I was thinking you were a complete idiot."

Sam's finger danced on the trigger of the shotgun. If he fired now there'd be a chance the salt round would make it through the door. Then again, if he did that it'd compromise the only thing keeping the demons from swarming inside. "Who the hell are you?"

"Name's Meg, halfie. Now how 'bout you come out so we can talk?"

"You want to talk?" Was there a chance that they could work through this? Sam knew from personal experience that demons weren't the mindless murders everyone thought they were; some of them could be reasoned with.

"Did I say 'talk'? I meant 'kill you', you and that miniature freak you're trying to keep alive."

Damn it.

OoOoOo

Dean heaved a breath into Castiel's trench coat as they sailed through the sky at ridiculously fast speeds. They had been flying for what felt like forever but in reality was probably only something like ten minutes. Dean had hoped that the longer they were up here the easier it'd get but he was wrong. It was not easier. It still sucked. A lot.

Every half a minute or so Dean would catch a flash of movement out of the corner of his eye and he would know that it was Raphael. The archangel was gaining speed, Castiel's own power and speed not quite a match for the other and they were definitely being overtaken. He could feel it in the way Cas was flying now. When Raphael got a little too close he would feint to the side and try to lose him in the clouds. He was always careful though to always keep a firm hold on Dean, cradling his human close to his chest as his wings cut through the sky like ebony blades.

Suddenly something slammed into Castiel from the side. The angel's wings beat at the air as the impact sent him careening sideways and his grip slipped then tightened around Dean. Dean in turn clung even tighter, his breath coming out in short bursts as he tried not to panic, his efforts ruined by the cold sweat he felt beading up on his face. "Son of a bitch! _Cas_!"

"Hang on!" Cas's voice clipped and tense, that alone being enough for Dean to know that he was about to do something drastic. He was proven right when a second later Castiel tucked himself into a barrel roll, narrowly avoiding another side-swipe from what could only be Raphael.

On Dean's end it felt like he had been chained to a supersonic jet that was getting into a dogfight and he tried not to throw up all over Castiel's shoulder as the angel banked sharply to the right. The motion caused them to dip down into a thick layer of clouds then break through it and Dean for whatever reason finally deemed it a good chance to take a small peek and see where they had ended up. It was probably the worst mistake he had made all day.

When he looked down the only thing Dean saw was tall, foreboding white tipped mountains rising up to meet them. He didn't know how they had gotten there so fast but from pictures he had seen it definitely looked like the Alps, maybe the Himalayas or wherever else in the world there was a big ass mountain range. He might've called the view pretty had his thoughts not been focused on the fact that there was a good too many feet between him and the snow-covered mountain face beneath him.

Dean's gaze whipped back up as Castiel was jerked to the side again, hard this time as Raphael slammed directly into them, hard enough for Cas's hold to slip just a little too far. "_Dean!_"

Every thought but pure panic left Dean's mind as he suddenly found himself ripped from his angel's grasp and falling. That fear was reflected directly in Castiel's eyes before Dean lost sight of them, the angel's wings flapping desperately as he struggled mid-air with their pursuer. Too scared to even let out a scream, Dean flailed his limbs, trying to figure out how to slow down as he plummeted back towards the earth, free falling towards the craggy mountain tops below. An icy wind whipped at his clothing, making it impossible to even breathe, and just as his vision began to white out he caught sight of Cas breaking away from Raphael's hold, tucking his wings close to his body, and diving for Dean.

Falling backwards with his eyes facing up towards the sky, Dean didn't know how close he was to the ground, didn't know if Cas would get to him in time, didn't _want_ to know as he fought to stay conscious. Then out of the corners of his eyes he saw mountains rising up around him, like the rocks were surging up to swallow him alive. Cas was getting closer, almost close enough but he must be so close to impact now, it had to be just a second or two away—

Stretching out his hand, Castiel reached down for Dean and Dean scrambled frantically to grab onto him. He swore a blue streak in his head as their fingertips just brushed, but then Cas somehow gave one more burst of speed and the angel's hand gripped tight onto Dean's forearm. His black wings flared out around him as he tried to slow their descent, Dean's body jolting and his joints protesting at the sudden change in pace. He didn't have to sit with the discomfort long as a moment later he slammed into a snowy slope and the air was knocked out of his lungs.

Dean quickly lost track of which way was up as he and Cas tumbled over each other, limbs, snow, and wings flying. He could feel Castiel trying to tuck around him, protect him from the fall as they somersaulted further down the slope. Finally, after what seemed like forever, they skidded to a halt. Lifting his head from the pile of ice that had built up around him, Dean shakily wiped his face off as he slowly recollected himself.

Snow was underneath every piece of clothing Dean had on and had gotten into places Dean didn't even know he had. He felt movement beside him and looked over to see Castiel sprawled next to him and covered in white, his wings slowly emerging from the ice as he flexed them and pulled himself up from the ground. "…Dean?"

"Cas…You alright?"

At the sound of his voice, Castiel's head turned and a moment later the angel's hands were on him, smoothing over his arms and face. "I'm sorry! Dean, I'm so sorry! Are _you_ alright?"

Dean nodded but the truth was clear as even that small motion caused a dull twinge to shoot through his muscles. He was pretty sure that the arm Cas had grabbed onto had been about a second away from dislocating but, since everything still seemed attached and working, he was about as good as he could've hoped for. "I'll live…But swear to God I'm never flying again."

"Of course." Castiel tore his gaze away from Dean's face and looked up, "We aren't safe though, not yet. Come, can you stand?"

"Help me up."

Cas did, pushing himself up onto his own feet before reaching his hand out for a second time. Grabbing it with far greater ease than last time, Dean let the angel pull him up, stumbling only once before finding his footing. The snow came up past his ankles and seeped into his boots but the fear rushing through him momentarily kept the chill away.

Their attention was caught as a shadow rushed passed overhead and Castiel's hand tightened on Dean's. Neither of them had any time to do anything more than look up though before Raphael landed in front of them, his large white wings blocking out the sunlight. Cas immediately threw Dean behind him, the smaller angel's black wings flaring out in response as Raphael spoke. "Your weakness for humans has always been your downfall. You should have run while you had the chance, Castiel."

"I would never do that, Raphael. You know that."

"I do. Which is why I came prepared."

As he spoke, the archangel reached into an inner pocket of his suit and withdrew a large flask. Dean scoffed as he saw it, trying to hide his nerves. "What are you going to do? Give us alcohol poisoning?"

When Raphael's gaze shifted to Dean he kind of wished he had kept his mouth shut. "This is not alcohol. Here, Castiel, you tell your monkey just what this is."

Cas flinched back as Raphael uncorked the flask and with one smooth motion splashed the contents all over the both of them. The angel's eyes widened with fear but Dean didn't even have the chance to ask what was wrong. With a snap a spark flew from Raphael's fingertips and landed on the liquid Dean and Cas were doused in.

They went up like a tinder box. Shouting is surprise as flames instantly burst up around them, Dean quickly dropped back to the ground and slapped snow onto his burning clothes. He actually got most of it out but just when he was about to think that Raphael's attack was pretty pathetic for an archangel a stifled scream from his side stopped that thought cold. Spinning around, Dean watched as Cas stripped off his smoldering trench coat and flung it to the snow, his wings drawing tight against his back as a line of fire surrounded him. "_Cas?_"

"Dean!" Cas lurched towards him but the line of fire burst up and sent him stumbling back, the heat from the blaze melting the snow around it. The flame was separating Dean from his angel and by the way it kept growing let Dean know that this wasn't any kind of natural fire. "Dean, it's holy oil! I can't get out!"

Fuck, he should've recognized right away. That impromptu flight had gotten him all turned around. If Cas got any of that on him he'd get some serious burns and he couldn't get through. But Dean could. "Like hell you can't!"

By now the flames had reached about four feet high and what felt like about a thousand degrees but Dean ran straight for it. Raphael moved for him but held back for just a second, probably wary of getting too close to the fire himself. It gave Dean enough time to skid into the blaze, kicking up a wave of new snow. That alone wasn't enough to put the fire out but it helped, as did Dean's legs sliding through the burning oil. Yes, it hurt, it hurt bad but it was probably only a first degree burn and it was better than whatever would've happened to Cas if he had fallen in it instead.

Sliding through it didn't extinguish the fire completely but it did break the circle that had Castiel trapped. As soon as he was presented with the opportunity the angel rushed for the new escape route and jumped onto Dean. Wrapping his arms tightly around Cas, his wings shuddering under Dean's palms, Dean rolled back out and back into the snow. The ice instantly cooled his burnt skin and, after freeing Cas from his hold, Dean smacked the parts of his jeans that had started to char again, embers flying off of the singed fabric.

"It seems as if I will have to get my hands dirty after all. Pity."

That was the only warning Dean got before a gust of wind hit him and silver flashed out of the corner of his eye. Still sitting on top of Dean and still shaken from the fire, Castiel let out a sharp gasp and then tumbled off of him, tackled head on by Raphael. Cas struggled against the other angel, fought tooth and nail to keep the wicked looking silver blade Raphael held in his hands from stabbing into him.

"Raphael, please! Not this!"

"Your continued impudence has left me little choice, Castiel. It is clear now there is nothing I can do to change you and I have allowed this to go on for far too long."

Dean felt out of the loop again but the fear that had returned in full-force to Cas's eyes was a good enough sign that the blade in the archangel's hand meant trouble. "Cas!"

"Stay back!"

By some small miracle Castiel managed to wrestle Raphael away and he flew back to Dean's side, "Dean, that sword is an angel's blade; it is one of the few things that can destroy another angel's Grace!"

"_What?_" An angel's Grace? If his Grace was destroyed would that mean that Cas would be gone forever? Permanently gone? He couldn't let that happen. "Cas, get outta here!"

"No, Dean, I won't leave you."

"This is not the time to be a fucking martyr! _Shit!_" Dean stumbled back as Raphael rushed at Castiel again, pushing past Dean like he wasn't even there to get at the other angel. Dean didn't even see the two collide, just heard a Cas let out a sharp yell and saw a flash of black as he ripped himself free again and dodged away.

Without having any way to actually defend himself against the stronger, faster creature it was clear that Cas wasn't going to last long. All Raphael needed was one lucky shot and Castiel would be done for. They were both moving almost too fast for Dean to see but he still followed as close as he could behind their scuffle. Dean wasn't stupid enough to throw himself right in the middle of the fight; Raphael could probably break him in half with one hand, but he was waiting for a moment to come when he could actually help.

When Dean's chance finally came he almost missed it. Castiel was tiring fast and Raphael had begun to get the upper hand. The lesser angel ducked down as Raphael swung his blade but tripped over his own feet and fell down onto the snow, left fully exposed for a follow-up attack. As the archangel plunged his sword down, straight at Cas's chest, Dean made his move. Already close-by, it took him less than five steps to reach them and threw himself in front of Castiel.

The pain was instantaneous. Even Raphael looked surprised as the long silver blade sliced into Dean's abdomen. Dean could feel Castiel jump up behind him, the world suddenly moving in slow motion. He blinked and Cas was at his side, the angel literally grabbing onto the blade—not the hilt, the blade—still visible and pulled it out of Dean's middle with a spatter of red. Raphael withdrew his sword the rest of the way, slicing Castiel's palm open but Cas seemed unaware of his own injury, shouting something Dean couldn't quite make out at the archangel.

By the look in his eyes it seemed Raphael's full attention was actually on Dean for the first time, as if recognizing him as an actual living thing. For half a second he leaned forward, as if to grab a hold of Dean, but then he seemed to remember himself and stepped back. Then there was a bright flash of light and he vanished into thin air.

Gripping his wound, Dean's vision swam as he struggled to stay upright. In his peripheral vision he saw Cas crouched down over the snow, his palm pressed to a blood red sigil drawn onto the white snow at his feet, but before he could really understand what was happening a white-hot stab of pain sent his head spinning.

Dean felt his knees give out and fell to the snowy ground as he clutched at the growing spot of red on his stomach. Cas was back at his side in an instant, his strong hands gently lowering Dean the rest of the way down so that he was laying on his back. "Dean!"

"Wh-where is he?"

"When the sword cut me, my blood—Away, I sent him away, for a few minutes."

Dean bit his tongue to keep in a scream of pain, his breath coming in short, shuttering gasps as warm blood seeped between his fingers. It hurt like a son of a bitch, the pain deep and aching, and he tried not to move his hands. He could feel that the wound was deep and the cut itself a good eight to ten inches long. He didn't want to know what would come spilling out if he shifted in the wrong direction. The one plus was it made him forget all about the burns on his legs. "D-Damn it. This, this is the second time I'm, I'm dying in the same month. First I get in a wreck and now this…"

His voice trailed off as he felt blood welling up in his throat, a cough bubbling up and causing the pain in his stomach to spike. Castiel was leaning over him now, his wings draping over the both of them and his eyes wide with fear. "Dean, try not to talk!"

"This month sucks…"

The angel's lips pursed into a thin line before he seemed to come to a decision. "Tilt your head back."

Another painful cough burst out of Dean and he tried to swallow the blood that came up but his tongue felt too thick in his throat. As he moved his head to where Cas wanted it, Dean slowly noticed what Cas wanted to do as he bent down to press their lips together. It definitely wasn't a kiss he was going for though. "…Don't know what you heard about humans, Cas, but, this ain't something you, you can fix with CPR."

Sam had told Dean how Castiel had tried to perform mouth-to-mouth after he wrecked the Impala. The heart-sick desperation in it. Dean hadn't really believed it until now. It was hard to deny when he was staring right at it. Castiel though, he just narrowed his eyes. "I'm not trying to perform Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation. Now please, Dean, allow me to do this."

And how could Dean say anything against that? He was dying anyway, it wasn't like Cas could do something to worsen his condition. His thoughts faded away as Cas finally moved in and sealed their lips together. Dean allowed himself a moan as he felt Castiel's lips part to deepen the kiss and he quickly followed suit. This wasn't such a bad way to go, in the long run. If you died while making out with an angel, was that a free ticket to Heaven or a one-way trip to Hell?

As they kissed, Dean slowly felt something unnatural stirring in his chest and realized that he wouldn't have the chance to figure out the answer to that question. A warmth was seeping in from Castiel's kiss, a literal warmth, almost like he was inhaling a plume of dry steam. The heat was sinking down into him, into his core where it seemed to flare up once it reached his center. It was only when he felt the pain in his stomach beginning to fade did Dean recognize the reality of what was happening. Of what Cas had been trying to do on that day of the wreck. What he was feeling, it was Castiel's Grace. And damn, did it feel good.

Apparently feeling a little bit of good was too much to ask for. Dean was just about feeling something similar to healthy again when Cas suddenly pulled his lips away with a sharp inhale, his gaze snapping up to the left. Panting, Dean blinked up at him and tried to regain his senses. "Why'd you stop?"

"Raphael, he's already—ngh!" Castiel was cut off as he jerked to the side, blasted right off of Dean by a fucking lightning bolt.

Dean stared up wide eyed at the spot where Cas had been only an instant before his brain was able to catch up with what had just happened. "Son of a bitch!" Scrambling up with a wince as his newly repaired muscles and skin pulled tight, Dean clamored through the snow on his hands and knees over to where Castiel had fallen. The angel was shaking but used his wings to raise himself into a sitting position, Dean quickly wrapping his arm around him to help him the rest of the way up. Both their efforts were cut short as an invisible force slammed into them, knocking them both back another couple feet.

"_Enough!_"

Shaking his head, Dean grimaced as he looked up to find Raphael landing in front of them, his face drawn up in a furious scowl. "Enough of this! You dare to send me away with cheap parlor tricks? I gave you the honor of a fair fight and this is how you repay me? I was only going to make an example of you before, Castiel. Now I will make you suffer."

OoOoOo

Sam felt the palms of his hands beginning to sweat and he quickly let the shotgun drop just long enough to wipe the sweat off onto his jeans. No way was he going to risk having slippery hands. Claire let out a little whimper behind him as Meg continued to speak and he quickly returned to his offensive stance.

"Now that the archangel's gone, we can finally get down to business so stop hiding like a little girl, Sam. It's not very attractive." Sam's jaw tightened but he bit back a response, not wanting to show he was affected by taunting. He had spent enough time with demons to know that the worst thing to do was to show any kind of weakness. "How about you come out and play with the big boys now?"

If they were going to have a fight they were going to do it on his terms. "How about you come over here instead?"

"I suppose we'll have to. Fellahs, let's move this show along, shall we?" Her voice faded out slightly, like she had stepped away, but then there was another loud bang on the door. This time it was a strong enough blow to make the metal begin to buckle. Realizing that it was only a matter of time before the door gave, Sam hustled Claire back into the far corner. Heart pounding in his chest, he took the few remaining moments they had to crack open one of the salt rounds that was meant for the shotgun and scattered the salt crystals around them in a circle. It would be harder for him to get out but it would be nearly impossible for the other demons to get in.

Throwing the empty cartridge to the side, Sam brought the shotgun back up. Claire huddled beside him, grabbing back onto his pants leg as the door to the warehouse jumped in its frame as one of the demons landed another rough blow. It was followed by another and another, the metal crunching in a little more with each hit until, finally, the hinges gave in.

One more blow and the door ripped from the wall and fell to the concrete floor with a loud _clang_. Across the room Sam steeled himself and as soon as the first demon walked through the opening he made good on his earlier threats and pulled the trigger. The male demon let out a strangled hiss as salt was shot right into his chest and fell to the ground, writhing in pain.

Another rushed in after the first, stepping right over the fallen demon's body, and Sam shot him too. Soon though too many were flooding in at once for Sam to keep up with. He had to reload after every two shots and the ones he had hit first were slowly getting back to their feet, wounded but not dead. Meg had entered in the middle of the horde, a chilling smirk on her face as she watched Sam wear himself down.

By now the demons had them fully surrounded, the salt on the ground the only thing keeping them at bay. Sam was doing as well as he could with the shotgun, never missing a single shot as he fired round after round into the crowd. One, no, two demons who had been hit multiple time actually smoked out of their bodies and back down to Hell. That still left only…ten demons left.

Finally the inevitable happened and Sam's fingers closed around the last salt round in his pocket. Knowing he had to make it count, he stopped just long enough to line up a shot right between the closest demon's eyes. Claire let out a scream as the salt found its mark and the demon lurched back then opened his mouth, black smoke pouring out into the concrete floor.

Just because he was out of ammunition didn't mean he was ready to give up the fight yet. Sam spun the shotgun around and used the butt of the gun like a club, striking at whatever demon got in range. It quickly proved to be fairly useless though, like hitting an angry pit bull with a rolled up newspaper, so he switched tactics, using the only line of defense left to him.

Sam felt his eyes shift to black as he stretched out with his powers, picking one demon after another and exorcising them out of their physical bodies. After the second Sam was already starting to feel it, his head aching as he tried to focus enough to pick a third demon to go after. This was why he hadn't done this from the start. He knew his limits. But the salt line around them was beginning to thin; it wouldn't be long before the demons got through and he needed to take out as many of these bastards as he could. Or he could just go for the most important target he could. Sam's gaze found Meg in the crowd and he reached a hand out.

Meg's eyes locked onto his as her body froze up, her gaze turning black. Sam grimaced as he fought to keep her under control but she was stronger than the others. He tasted blood in his mouth as his body began to shake from exertion; he definitely should have taken her on first.

Sweat began to bead up on his forehead as Sam felt his body wobble, his legs feeling weak. Every ounce of his concentration was being funneled into keeping control over her but he knew he wasn't doing a good enough job when her lips twitched up into a sneer. She shouldn't even be able to move, that was not a good sign. "You just made the biggest mistake of your life, boy."

With a sharp jerk, Meg tore herself free from his control and Sam reeled back with a muffled scream as a sharp burst of pain exploded in his brain. It felt like the worst migraine he'd ever had multiplied by one hundred, like someone had stabbed an ice-pick right through his skull. The pain knocked him right down onto his knees, his chest heaving as he gripped at his head.

"Uncle Sammy!"

"Aw, look at that, the puppy is trying to protect its master."

Sam tried to focus through the red haze that had settled in his mind and realized that, sure enough, Claire had stepped in front of his crumpled form. "C-Claire, no. Get back behind me."

Meg crouched down so that she was at their height, her voice lightening into a sickeningly childish tone. "You should do as he says, little girl. You'll get your turn soon enough anyway, I promise."

A defensive instinct Sam didn't even know he had reared up in his chest and he tried and pathetically failed to get back up onto his feet. "Claire—"

"—No!" A shudder ran down Sam's spine as a rustling split the air above him and suddenly a small pair of pale yellow wings was fanning out over him. "No, I won't let you hurt him!"

Sam saw Meg take a step back but when Claire had put her wings out the wind had virtually destroyed what was left of their salt ring. The demon recovered quickly from her shock and a sneer was soon back on her lips. "How sweet. Now both of you had each made a bad mistake. You match now! Do you know what you just did, little girl?"

Claire had begun to tremble against Sam, the feathers in her wings fluttering. "N-no, I, I didn't…"

"Oh, but you did. You put your wings out and now, guess what? Every demon in the state will know exactly where you are and they're coming. They'll be _so_ happy to meet you."

"S-Sam?"

Meg was right, Sam knew she was right. The aura coming off of Claire wasn't as noticeable—or as painful—as a full-blown angel's would be but it was strange, unique enough that every demon in the area would be sure to pick up on it. Even if they didn't know what it was, they'd probably come to investigate and it wasn't hard to guess whose side they'd join when the figured the situation out. A Nephilim would be a natural target for demons; something as potentially dangerous as an angel but held within something they could actually kill. Wincing, Sam pulled himself together enough to form a full sentence, "Claire, you flew once, do it again. Get out of here."

"But, I, I don't know how!"

"Too bad, looks like you won't have the chance to figure it out." Straightening up, Meg pulled a small, straight dagger from her belt. "I know this won't work on angels, but I'm pretty sure that rule doesn't apply for half-breeds. I suppose the only way to know for sure is to try it out."

Seeing Meg lunge forward, Sam reached up to pull Claire down underneath him but he knew he wouldn't be able to move fast enough. He closed his eyes, unable to watch as the demon swung the dagger down, directly into Claire's back.

But the scream he had been expecting never came.

A second passed and then another before Sam cautiously opened an eye to see what had happened. Claire was still pressed against him, quivering head to toe with her face buried against his shoulder. And there, hanging in the air, was Meg's blade, the dagger and the demon still grasping onto it standing as still as a statue with the tip of the dagger mere inches from Claire's skin. Behind Meg the rest of the other demons had gone still as well—in fact, the entire rest of the building seemed frozen. Demons were stopped in mid-step, dust hung motionless in the air, and even sound seemed to have stilled. It was like the rest of the world was just a movie and someone had pressed 'pause'.

Sam heaved a breath as his eyes moved back to Meg's dagger that had come so close to Claire. Another millisecond or two and she would've been a goner. "Jesus…"

"Not quite. Close though, you know, in the grand scheme of it all."

Sam and Claire both jumped at the new voice, their gazes moving over to the door in tandem as none other than Gabriel himself strolled in. The diminutive archangel had his hands in his pockets and a thoughtful look on his face as he made his way through the frozen demon horde and over to the corner Sam and Claire had trapped themselves in. "Boy, you two sure know how to pick them."

For a long moment Sam was sure he was hallucinating, that he had blacked out and was having a really strange dream, but no, he could still feel a pain in his head and Claire gripping at his shoulders. She seemed to be equally shocked, looking up at Gabriel with wide, hopeful eyes as Sam stammered out a reply. "What, what are you doing here? What did you do?"

"Just froze time for a minute or two, no big deal." Oh, right, no big deal.

"Are you _helping_ us?" When they had last met, the archangel had made it pretty clear that he had no intention whatsoever in joining in the fight. And now Sam had a feeling that he hadn't had since he first laid eyes on the blockade the demons had set up in the road: hope that they might make it out of this in one piece.

Gabriel gave an exaggeratedly nonchalant shrug as he finally made his way over to their corner, strolling past Meg like she was nothing more than a lawn ornament. "You're interesting. Looking back, it's been a long time since I've seen something so interesting. Especially wrapped up in such a nice package." Sam returned the archangel's wink with a frown. Realizing Sam wasn't in a joking mood, he rolled his eyes. "That, and all the fighting and screaming was disrupting my television viewing."

Despite Gabriel's protests, Sam had a feeling that he wasn't entirely telling the whole truth. He was doing just a bit too much overacting and it definitely seemed like he was trying to cover up a separate motive altogether. "You sure it wasn't your conscience?"

"If it makes you feel better, you can think whatever you want, black eyes."

Yeah, it was totally his conscience. Who knew archangels could feel guilty? As if he was able to hear what Sam was thinking, Gabriel scowled down at the both of them. It seemed he didn't like having his caring interior exposed. "Listen, I'm putting my ass on the line for you nobodies so you might as well be grateful. Now you, kiddo," Gabriel's gaze switched from Sam to Claire, "let's get this over with. My soap comes on in thirty minutes and I cannot miss it."

Sam was about to ask what the hell the archangel was going on about until he remembered what Castiel had asked of Gabriel. He had wanted the archangel to take Claire "under his wing", to protect her. Sitting up all the way, Sam eyed Gabriel warily, having no idea what this was going to entail. "What do we have to do?"

The archangel barely spared him a glance, the rest of his attention still on Claire. "_You _don't have to do anything. This is all up to her. She has to agree to be put under my guardianship for this to work. You ready to do that?"

Claire nodded and Sam blinked in surprise as her hand moved down from his shoulder to clutch at his own hand, seeking some silent support. With Gabriel here most of her fear had faded away, trusting in a naïve way that now everything would be alright, but there was still a heavy shadow of apprehension in the seven-year-olds blue eyes. She didn't know what was going to happen any more than Sam did. "I, I can do that."

"Okay, then let's get this show on the road."

Sam and Claire both blinked in surprise as Gabriel paused then bent down on one knee in front of them. His face had been wiped clean of any trace of his usual grin, instead replaced with a solemn expression Sam hadn't been expecting. "I, the archangel Gabriel, hereby pledge to protect you, Claire Novak, daughter of my brother, the angel Castiel, to the full extent of my divine powers, given by the Grace of my Father, for as long as you shall exist on this earth. Under my guardianship neither the flames of Hell nor the sins of Man will ever cause you any harm that is within my abilities to prevent. Do you willingly surrender yourself to my care?"

Claire looked back at Sam before answering, her voice remarkably strong. If Sam had had to do this at her age, he would've peed his pants. Even as an adult he was still scared of the archangel but he was half certain that was just the demon inside reacting to him. Even though Gabriel had his powers cloaked to a tolerable level just his presence instinctually made Sam freak out a little bit on the inside. "Will you protect my family too? Daddy, and Dean and Uncle Sammy?"

The serious expression on Gabriel's face broke for only a second as his lips twitched up in a confused smirk. He probably wasn't used to people putting conditions on being saved. Mulling it over for a moment, he finally acquiesced with another roll of his eyes, "In so far that assisting them will ultimately lead to your greater security, then yes, I will do so. Now once more, do you willingly surrender yourself to my care?"

"Yes."

"Well alright then."

As Gabriel made to stand back up, Sam couldn't help the protest that bust out of him. "What, that's it? No, no beam of light or glowing?" This seemed like it had meant a hell of a lot, especially between the angels going off of Castiel and Gabriel's earlier reactions. He had been expecting a little more pomp and circumstance or something.

Gabriel snorted as he rose back fully onto his feet. "An angel's oath is his bond, smoke and mirrors would just cheapen it. Though now that you mention it…" Pursing his lips in thought, he finally let whatever idea was forming in his mind go with a wave of his hand. "Eh, we'll have time for that later. There are some cockroaches behind me that need to be exterminated."

With that, Gabriel turned on his heels, held his hand up, and snapped. Instantly the rest of the room lurched back into a proper time flow, Meg's swing flying down into nothing but a patch of empty air. Almost in the same moment, all of the demons in the warehouse noticed Gabriel's presence, their eyes snapping over to him and turning as pitch black as Sam's. It was intimidating as hell from where Sam was sitting but the archangel seemed completely unaffected as he looked out over the small crowd with a cocky smile. "Hi guys!"

Sam saw Meg swallow and take another couple steps back. He knew exactly what she was feeling and it had to be confusing: an intangible sensation that this short, smirky man somehow very, very dangerous in spite of his appearance. The demon's eyes scanned the new threat carefully up and down, trying to figure him out. "W-who are you? Where'd you come from?"

"The name's Gabriel, maybe you've heard of me?" Gabriel's smile grew as gasps whispered through the horde. Most of the other demons had probably never seen an angel either, and Sam was fairly certain that _none_ of them had never seen an archangel before. "I see you have. Great! Means we don't have to go through awkwardly long backstories. Just as a heads-up, I don't like other people playing with my toys." Sam would've felt a little more insulted as Gabriel pointed a finger back at them had Meg's face no just paled to a deathly white. "That being said, you all five seconds to run as far as you can. After that, every demon within a fifty mile radius is going to be blasted into sulfur dust, capeesh?"

Even as some of the lesser demons took the angel's advice and made a panicked run for the open doorway Meg stood her ground for a minute longer. Sam had to give her props, she had guts. "You're willing to fight to protect _that_ thing?" Meg nodded at Claire with a look of disgust on her face and Sam squeezed Claire's hand.

"Well, between you and me it wouldn't be much of a fight. Now run along, and tell your daddy his big brother says 'hi'."

She had a lot of nerve but Meg was smart enough to know not to push her luck more than once. As the rest of her demonic gang sprinted for the door she followed after, tossing back one last glare before disappearing. The whole of them had dispersed like a flock of startled crows out into the night and Sam had no interest in chasing after them.

Regardless of his previous threats Gabriel seemed to be of the same mind and just watched them leave with his hands resting on his hips. It was a little ridiculous that he could look so casual after having just completed such an impossible task. As far as Sam knew he and Claire were two of the few things in existence to have survived a mass demon attack.

"Piece of cake. Demons like that never have enough backbone to really stat anything with angels."

Shaking his head, Sam pushed himself back up onto his feet, his headache finally receding enough to where he could stand upright without risking falling right back over again. "That's because they're smart."

"That too." Gabriel grinned back at Sam from over his shoulder. "But now that the easy stuff is over with, I guess I need to head out. After all, doesn't seem like Cassie and Dean-o are going to save themselves." Sam's gaze sharpened at the archangel's words. Did Gabriel know what had happened to Dean and Cas? "Whadda say about a 'thank you' kiss, Sammy?"

All the questions were stopped on the tip of Sam's tongue with a wave of exasperation. "I don't think so."

"Ah well, never hurts to try, right?" The statement was apparently rhetorical as Gabriel didn't give Sam the chance to answer. Instead, his expression lightened as he nodded down at Claire. "See if you can't stay out of trouble for the five minutes I'm gone, alight?"

The little girl's fingers tightened in Sam's, her wings perking up with cautious hope. "Can you bring my Daddy and Dean back?"

"That's the plan."

OoOoOo

Dean crouched defensively over where Castiel was sprawled across the snow, still recovering from being blasted in the side by angelic lightning. Not that there would really be anything he could do to stop whatever Raphael's next attack was but maybe he could postpone Cas getting hit by it long enough for the other to make his escape. Not that Cas would ever leave him.

Essentially, in the shape they were in, neither of them would survive Raphael's next move. And they both knew it. They were both ready for it. Which was why Dean was so completely turned around when the entire situation changed in an instant.

"Raphael!"

Out of nowhere Gabriel had appeared in front of them with a rustle of invisible wings, blocking Dean and Castiel both from Raphael's view. A burst of air rushed from Dean's lungs as Cas started forward in shock, both crouched shoulder to shoulder as Raphael stared the other archangel down. He had hid any surprise he had felt well, the rage on his face melting into angry frustration.

"Well if it isn't Gabriel. What are you doing here, brother?"

"Sorry hermano, but I can't let you do this."

Raphael definitely didn't look amused. Behind Gabriel, Dean held his breath, afraid that any slightest movement would send Gabriel away as quickly as he had come. Castiel seemed struck silent as well, gazing up at the two other angels with something akin to awe mixed with a healthy amount of lingering fear in his eyes. "And why is that exactly?"

"Long story but basically the kid, all of these goofballs really, just recently came under my protection."

"Gabriel, you didn't."

"Actually I did. So if you want to get to them, I'm afraid you'll have to get through me first."

"You?" Raphael scoffed at the smaller archangel. "Stop this foolishness now, Gabriel. You never were a warrior."

"Yeah, you're right. I guess today must be a full moon or something."

"Enough with your jokes." Revealing the long blade in his grip, Raphael pointed it at Gabriel in a clear warning. "This is your last chance to change your mind."

"Oh, well in that case I think I'll stay exactly where I am." Dean jerked back as a long sword seemed to materialize in Gabriel's hand as well, looking every bit as dangerous as Raphael's. "It's been a while since we've spared. Let's see if I still have that old razzle-dazzle."

As soon as the words left Gabe's mouth, white wings, each almost twice as long as he was tall, surged from his back and his whole body began to freaking glow, the golden light coming from somewhere beneath the archangel's skin as the crisp mountain air was filled with the sound of an oscillating chime. To Dean's ears it sounded like thousands of bells ringing or multitudes singing and, with his glow, suddenly all those stories about what angels were supposed to look like made sense. It looked beautiful but the power coming off Gabriel was terrifying.

Raphael narrowed his eyes and as his dark skin began to glow in response to Gabriel's challenge but Dean's view was suddenly cut short as Castiel leaned over and pressed a hand over his eyes. A heartbeat later, Dean flinched as he freaking _felt_ a wave of energy or light—something _powerful_—hit his face as both archangels reached their full power. It made his skin prickle and the hair on the back of his neck stand up, little shots of terror and adrenaline shooting through his beat-up body and found himself wondering just what would've happened if he had still had his eyes open. He was almost one hundred percent sure he wouldn't still have them now. "Very well, brother. Prepare yourself."

A gust of wind hit Dean's face and Castiel removed his hand from over Dean's eyes to reveal an empty field of snow in front of them. Gabriel and Raphael were gone. A flash of light and sound from above quickly indicated where they had gone off to and Dean craned his neck to look straight up. The archangels were dueling about a hundred feet in the air right over Dean's head. Again they were moving so fast it was hard to keep up with but every now and again Dean would catch a glance of white feathers or a flash of sparks when their swords crashed together.

It was like two forces of nature crashing together and Gabriel was definitely holding his own better than Castiel had. Then again, he wasn't obviously winning. The two archangels seemed equally matched but looking between the two of them Raphael seemed to be the more physically able one. It didn't help that Gabriel was nearly a foot shorter than him, though their wingspans were about equal.

Pulling his eyes away from the archangels, Dean looked instead at the angel sitting next to him, his brows drawn together in concern. "Hey Cas, is Gabriel going to be alright?"

Castiel frowned, his gaze still pointed up towards the sky. "I hope so. Raphael is powerful but Gabriel has a surprising amount of strength. That, and he has always been excellent at evading attacks. His speed may save him tonight."

"I sure hope so." Even if Gabriel had been a complete douchebag to them before he was helping them now so Dean had to be grateful for that. When Gabriel had first arrived he had said something about a kid coming under his protection; Dean could only hope that he was talking about Claire and that she and Sammy were alright, wherever they were. "Can you take us back home?" He'd even be willing to fly again if they could just get out of here.

"No, no I used up much of my strength already." The 'while I was healing you' part went unsaid but it was pretty clear to Dean what he meant. "I need time to recover."

"_Castiel_!" A shout from Gabriel overhead broke through their conversation. "Get your ass up here and help!"

Dean let out a small snort. "Was that enough time?"

"No. But I should go. Dean, stay here."

It wasn't like he really could've done anything different. Dean did what he could, helping to push Cas up onto his feet, but then had to just sit back and watch as Castiel spread his wings and launched himself up into the air. Dean had never felt more useless in his life as Cas soared up to meet them. He hated flying with a passion but sometimes being earthbound sucked.

Stuck in the position of spectator, Dean rose to his own feet to be as close to the action as he could. Now that Castiel was up there his eyes were glued on his angel, black dancing among white in a field of blue. Cas didn't have a weapon but he seemed to be keeping Gabriel between himself and Raphael, serving mainly as a distraction and a second pair of hands.

It seemed to give Gabriel just the edge he needed though and together they started slowly but surely beating Raphael back. Dean's breath caught in his throat a few times as Raphael's blade got a little too close to Cas's arms or chest but the lesser angel always dropped back just in time to avoid being seriously wounded. With everything they had already gone through that day he had to be tiring up there but was hiding his fatigue well.

Dodging a swing of Raphael's sword, Gabriel spun around and countered with a blow of his own, a burst of red indicating that he had actually made contact. The droplets of blood rained down onto the snow below where they were fighting and Dean shielded his eyes from the red mist with his hands. Being wounded did nothing to slow Raphael down though; if anything, he answered back with a vengeance, striking again and again at Gabriel and stabbing at Castiel whenever he got too close. Soon after Gabriel's blood joined his brother's on the snow as Raphael connected a blow on his side.

Dean nearly missed it himself as Cas chose that moment to act. Raphael's attention was on Gabriel and Cas jumped, almost literally, at the opportunity. In the blink of an eye he launched himself forward through the air, around Raphael's wings, and grabbed on tight to the archangel's sword arm. Raphael's wings beat at the sky and even from where he was standing Dean heard it as he let out a yell of frustration as Cas locked his arm behind his back. With blood still seeping from the cut on his side, Gabriel saw his chance and threw himself at Raphael. The two archangels crashed together then plummeted towards the earth, all the while wrestling for dominance midair while Castiel struggled to hang on.

Together they tackled Raphael roughly to the ground mere feet from where Dean was standing, slamming him into the snow. Dean knew he should probably keep his distance but he ran right over anyway to find all three floundering in the powdery ice. If it hadn't been such a serious situation it might've been a little funny but, as it was with swords, blood, and wings flying, it was hard for Dean to be anything but worried.

Skidding down into the small crater their impact had created, Dean eye's immediately searched for Cas, finding him tangled up with Raphael while Gabriel tried to pull himself away far enough away to make some sort of decisive move. All of them were gasping for air, Castiel just barely able to keep a hold on Raphael as he kept trying to surge forward and slash at Gabriel. Then Dean saw something change in Raphael's expression, his eyes widening as he subtly turned his sword around so that the blade was facing behind him. "Cas, _look out_!"

Dean's warning came just in time, Cas instinctively flinging himself to the side and avoiding Raphael's blade by inches as the archangel thrust it back. To Dean's surprise Gabriel had reacted to his call as well, throwing himself down onto Raphael and wrestling him down further into the snow. Cas was still trapped underneath both of them, his black wings a striking contrast to both the white snow beneath him and the white feathers of the archangel's above him. Other than being trapped he seemed relatively okay for the moment now that Gabriel had Raphael firmly under control, using one hand to keep Raphael's sword pinned and his other to hold his own blade to Raphael's neck.

Gabriel's expression was as serious as Dean had ever seen it, looking unexpectedly intimidating as he glared fiercely down at Raphael, a fire raging in his golden-brown eyes that hadn't been there when they had met in the abandoned theatre. His large white wings, now stained with crimson red streaks, were spread out wide, the wingspan a good foot or two longer than Castiel's on either side. He looked like a real warrior of God and only Raphael seemed to think little of the sudden transformation. "Stop this now, brother! Swear to me that you will leave the Nephilim, Castiel, and their humans alone and I will release you!"

Raphael snarled back at him, raging like a caged lion. "Gabriel, you know that I only intend to do what is right. The Nephilim cannot be allowed to live! Michael would agree with me."

"He probably would, but she is my concern and mine alone now. If she becomes a risk to us or humanity I will deal with her as is necessary. You will not interfere." Castiel's wings flexed but he stayed silent, probably not wanting to bring any unnecessary attention back onto himself.

"You are too soft, brother, allowing such an abomination to exist."

"Would expect anything less?"

Raphael sneered up at Gabriel. "Of you, no. Michael will hear of this."

A short laugh burst from Gabriel's lips. "I'm sure he will. When you see him tell him that I will be happy to come and explain myself in full."

"Release me and I will do just that."

"Ah ah," Gabriel pressed his sword just slightly closer to Raphael's throat, the blade pressing against the skin but not breaking it, "not until you say the magic words."

Gritting his teeth, Raphael looked like he was about to spit back an insult but seemed to think better of it. It wouldn't take a genius to figure out that he wasn't in the best position to be belligerent and Raphael was not a stupid being. With a sickened look, Raphael finally relented. "I swear that I will not harm the Nephilim, Castiel, or their companions. But if they grow out of control I _will_ come after _you_."

"Love you too, bro."

With that, Gabriel released the other archangel and pushed himself up. Dean stumbled back, sure that Raphael was going to spin around and attack them again, but instead the larger archangel just lifted himself up and off of Castiel, took a few steps forward, flexed his blood-stained wings, then, without even glancing back at any of them, disappeared. Even Gabriel seemed relieved that he had actually left and when he heaved a long breath Dean realized that he hadn't been the only one expecting a counter-attack.

"Damn…I need to exercise more."

Now that he was free, Dean ran over to where Castiel was still laying and helped his angel back up and onto his feet. Cas seemed as exhausted as Dean had guessed he was, leaning heavily onto Dean as his ruffled wings vanished. He still found the energy to speak though, his voice growing a little stronger as Dean's hand tightened around his waist. "Gabriel, thank you. For coming. It was, unexpected."

"Yeah, well…" The archangel tilted his head toward Cas, "it would've felt like a crime against nature to leave you to deal with this alone, like kicking a puppy caught out in the rain."

"And Claire?"

Gabriel rolled his eyes, "I've officially accepted her as my charge."

Dean felt Cas melt a little in his hold and it looked like the weight of the world had just been lifted off his shoulders. "Thank you, Gabriel."

"Don't thank me just yet." Gabriel's usual grin was back on his face, though the effect was somewhat ruined as he swiped his hair out of his eyes only to leave a streak of blood across his forehead. "All this means is that you just earned yourself a lifetime of dealing with me. And don't think I'm going to make this easy for you just because I helped you out today."

Instead of being bothered Castiel actually smiled at Gabriel, "My sanity for the lives of my daughter, Dean, and Sam is more than a fair trade-off."

"Yeah, you won't be singing that same tune in ten years. But who am I to ruin your moment of delusional happiness?"

Dean shook his head. He suspected that Gabriel was right, that Cas wouldn't be feeling so happy about the situation in about ten years but he also knew that Cas would never regret his decision. "Hey, Gabe? Thank you, seriously, for everything but do you think you could get us back to Sam and Claire now? I don't know if Cas here is delusional or not but he's definitely a minute or two away from collapsing."

"What, I haven't done enough for you today?"

"Please?" There was no way they were walking back. Dean still wasn't exactly positive about where they actually were but he had a sneaking suspicion it was somewhere in the Himalayas.

"Alright, _fine_." From Gabriel's tone it was clear he didn't actually mind too much and was just protesting more for the show of it than anything else. For such a powerful, ancient creature, he was pretty immature when he wanted to be. Not that that was a big news flash or anything.

Walking over to where Dean and Cas were standing—or barely standing in Cas's case—Gabriel eyed them each in turn before pressing two fingers to each of their foreheads. "You two knuckleheads better stay out of trouble for at least the next few hours otherwise I'm going to be ticked off. I don't deal well with high-maintenance relationships. It'll be a couple of days at least until I check up on you and I don't want to find any damaged parts."

"We'll do our best."

"You do that."

Dean closed his eyes and made sure he still had a good grip on Cas as he began to feel a weird tingly sensation in his head. He had spent enough time with angels in the past few weeks to know what was coming next. Sure enough, he felt his feet leave the ground an instant before he felt air whip around him and the world went black.

OoOoOo

"…De…an.."

"…Dean…"

"Dean."

"Hey Dean!"

Dean's eyes snapped open and was completely disoriented when he found himself on his back, sprawled out on a grass field under a clouded night sky. And then there was Sam, hanging over him like a six-foot plus vulture, his brows knit together in concern. "Dean, you okay man?"

"Ugh…" Dean pushed himself up onto his elbows. His whole body felt—it was hard to describe how it felt actually besides bad. That's probably what getting transported halfway across the world by an archangel got you. "Is Cas here?"

"Yeah, right beside you."

Turning his head, sure enough Dean found Cas laying on the grass next to him with his eye closed, Claire trying to comb the tangles out of her father's hair with her fingers. "What about Gabriel?"

"No, he never showed up. We were in there," Sam pointed back at a broken-down concrete warehouse that looked like it hadn't been in operation since the eighties, "when we felt something strange out here. We found you two like this."

Dean grunted as he rubbed his head, "Gabriel must've just dropped us off."

"He's got great aim then. Another four feet to your left and you would've landed right on top of the Impala." For some reason Dean didn't think that was an accident. "But is something wrong with Cas? Your clothes are both pretty torn up and bloody."

Dean looked away from Sam's worried stare and glanced back at Cas. "He's just tired. It's been a long day."

Sam let out a small, mirthless chuckle as he helped Dean up. "Tell me about it."

"What happened to you?"

"Demons." Dean raised a brow and took another look around. Now that Sam mentioned it, the Impala, which was indeed parked mere feet away, looked like it had skidded off the road into the field they had landed in and Sam smelled suspiciously of gunpowder and sulfur. "While I was trying to drive us out of the city they forced us off the road and Claire and I ended up cornered inside that warehouse. We probably would've been done for if Gabriel didn't show up when he did. He scared them off then I guess he went to you guys."

"I guess so. He had a pretty busy couple of hours."

"Almost as busy as ours."

"Not quite, but almost."

Sam shook his head, both Winchesters looking down as Castiel began to stir. "So, we're done, right? Now that Gabriel's on our side, we're okay? Nowhere else we need to drive off to in an insane amount of time in the dead of night?"

Claire scooted back and made room for Dean to crouch down next to Cas and drag him back up to his feet. The angel was a little shaky at first but slowly grew steadier as they slowly made their way to the car, though he still seemed pretty out of it. "Sammy, the only place we need to dive to is a hotel."

"That I think we can manage."

And they did, though just barely. After a short discussion and swapping more detailed stories of what they had each gone through that night, Dean decided that out of all of them he was probably the most fit to drive. Once they got him packed away in the backseat with Claire, Cas had started to snooze again. Now that he had his angelic powers back he was healing much faster though and by the time they finally found a hotel he was looking relatively good.

The best part about it was that on their way into a more populated area of town Sam told Dean to stop at one of the nicer hotels. Well, more specifically he said "I just survived near certain death, Dean. I want to sleep on a real mattress tonight with clean linens, a hot shower, and room service." And really, if Sam was paying Dean wasn't going to deny his baby brother his wish.

When Dean finally did find a place it was just ritzy enough to have valet parking without being too extravagant. Leaving Castiel and Claire outside to deal with the valet, Dean and Sam went on ahead inside the lobby to book a room. It felt weird as hell but really, really good to book into a hotel for the first time in almost three weeks knowing that there wasn't anywhere they really had to be in the morning. That they could legitimately relax tonight and maybe even sleep in tomorrow. Ah, the perks of having a guardian archangel.

Leaning onto the counter Dean offered the receptionist a quick smile. "Two rooms please, one with one queen size, the other with two doubles."

Sam quirked a brow as the receptionist began to type the request into her computer. "Dude, you're getting us our own room?"

"Nope, I'm getting you and Claire your own room. Tonight I plan to celebrate getting through all this shit alive in the best way possible."

"What do you-?" Sam stopped short before his face pinched up in a perfectly-executed bitch face. "Ah, ew! Dean! Too much information!"

"Serves you right for being so nosy." Truth was he, and almost definitely Cas, was too tired to get up to much of anything tonight but Sam was right. They had just escaped near certain death and they should be celebrating. Even if he and Cas just slept in the same bed, literally did nothing but sleep, Dean would be happy. And if they got enough energy to do a little more then, hey, that was just icing on the cake.

"So you and Cas are officially, you know, together now?"

"Yeah, I think so. I hope so." The receptionist ignored their conversation like a pro, just sliding a payment contract across the counter for Sam to sign and the keys to two rooms to Dean as his brother signed. Being positioned so close to New York, New York she had probably seen a lot stranger people walk through her doors.

"Good. Watching you two dance around each other was getting old."

Dean snorted as Sam slid the contract back over to the receptionist with a quick thanks. They had to go get Cas and Claire before either of them went anywhere so they both started walking back out towards the street. Something seemed to be on Sammy's mind as they walked across the lobby though, so Dean wasn't surprised when it finally spilled out. "Hey, Dean?"

"Hm?"

Sam seemed to be choosing his words thoughtfully. Normally it would've put Dean on edge but if something had gone wrong already in the short drive to the hotel, he was pretty sure Sammy would've spoken up in the car. "Now that this is over, what are you going to do with yourself?"

Okay, not that bad yet. It was just…"I don't know. I haven't given it much thought." And honestly Dean hadn't. Until about half an hour ago he had been positive that he was going to die. It was a little hard to try and plan out your future when you didn't think you had one. More than that, now that the Roadhouse was destroyed there was no real easy answer. Dean didn't know if he wanted to move back to his hometown, not with all the memories he had of it now, but he didn't know what else he would do with himself but that. All he knew was that wherever he went, he didn't want to go there alone anymore.

Sam nodded in understanding"…I was thinking about moving out of my old apartment. Been thinking about it for a while now but I think this is the year I'm really going to do it."

"Good. Good for you, Sammy." And it really was. From what Dean had gathered, the apartment he was living in now was doing nothing for his brother's mental health. He needed to get out of the place where Jess died and try to start moving on and it looked like Sam had finally realized that for himself.

"There're some apartments that just opened up near campus that I've had my eye on. Some nice three bedroom townhouses. It'd be perfect but they're too big for just one person."

When Sam glanced at Dean from the corner of his eye he knew that he didn't just bring this up to keep him well informed. "Three bedroom, huh?"

"Yup."

"You know…" Shouldering the door open, Dean met Sam's gaze. "I kind of always wanted to move out to California, just for a little while. I think a little time off would be good for me."

Sam nodded to where Castiel was just finishing handing the Impala's keys to the valet, his strict, deadpan warning to return it wothout a scratch reaching them down the sidewalk. He had Claire pulled up into his arms, his daughter happily wrapping one arm around his neck. "Cas and Claire could probably use some rest too."

If they were thinking the same thing, Dean had to admit that he liked his brother's train of thought. "Probably." Just the idea of him, Sam, Cas, and Claire all getting to live in the same place, even if it was just for a little while, made a warm, happy feeling pool in Dean's chest. It'd be hard to think of anything he wanted more than that at this point in his life. "I guess you're the only one that really has anything to get back to right now. The rest of us might actually get some well-deserved time off."

Speaking of getting back to things…Dean paused as they reached Castiel and Claire, the little girl quickly turning and stretching her arms out towards Dean for a hug. Cas smiled as he passed Claire into Dean's arms, Claire quickly wrapping her arms around Dean's neck. "Hey Sammy…When does school start for you again?"

Sam paused to think about it as he slipped the key to the room with the two double beds from Dean's hand. "On the 26th."

"Dude, it's the 29th."

"…I'm so screwed."


	10. Chapter 10

Well, I bet some of you probably thought that I forgot about this story. I didn't! Life's just been ridiculous lately. My Master's Thesis is coming due and, well, let me put it into Supernatural terms: two years ago I made a deal with a rather powerful demon (ie: my university) so that I could get into Grad School and now my time's run out, it's 11:59 pm and hellhounds (ie: Graduate Division Studies) are trying to break down my door and 1 second away from dragging my soul to Hell. Yay!

That being said, I apologize immensely for the wait and hope that the end product was at least somewhat worth it. Better late then never? Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed for the last chapter: Wol Lo, supreme dramon, ramen-is-my-goddess, uoduck, egyptian1995, and Afgncaap8!

O

* * *

><p>Chapter 10: Epilogue<p>

* * *

><p>They finally made it back to Palo Alto, California five days later. "They" meaning Dean, Cas, and Claire. Sam had jumped a plane first thing the morning after they had beat off Raphael, willing to pay the ridiculous price a place ticket within twenty-four hours of the flight. Dean had had enough of flying for one lifetime and had adamantly refused to go along. Cas didn't seem to be eager to be separated from Dean so soon and he and Claire together decided to tag along with Dean as he drove the Impala back across the United States.<p>

Dean probably could've gotten them back to California in two or three days if he had pushed it but it turned out that when he wasn't running for his life he actually really enjoyed road-trips. The only possible issue Dean could see was that when they pulled in for the night he and Cas couldn't get up to any funny business with Claire sleeping less than ten feet away. Then again, he and Cas had kept with the habit of sharing a bed, leaving the second for Claire to have all to herself, and waking up to an armful of angel was a fine second to sex. Not that Dean didn't want sex—he really, really wanted it, but now there was a lot less urgency. It felt like they had all the time in the world.

On their trip back to the West Coast they were still driving during most of their daylight hours but Dean made sure to stop at any roadside attractions that looked worth their time. Sam had left him with a credit card—mostly because after everything they'd been through he didn't want Dean to end up in jail for fraud—so they were able to eat at decent restaurants, stay in hotels, not motels, and buy the occasional souvenir Claire asked for. It was actually really nice.

When they had finally made it back they all had a surprise waiting for them. Sam had only gotten there about a week before them but in a move Dean could only ascribe to psychotic determination had already signed a lease for one of those new townhome apartments he had been going on about and had most of his possessions packed into boxes, ready to go. He had given his requisite two-weeks' notice to his landlord as soon as he had gotten back from New York and was just waiting for the final second week to be up so he could move into his new place.

Dean, Cas, and Claire ended up staying in a hotel in Palo Alto, mostly because Dean didn't want to be anywhere near his brother when he was so stressed out. As if the sudden decision to move wasn't enough, Sam had also been having a rough time getting back into school since he had already missed a handful of classes. From what Dean heard him say, Sam had made up some lie about his grandmother dying of cancer and had even come up with some fake death certificates to prove it to his professors. Dean was actually a little proud of that last part; it seemed that Sammy had inherited the Winchester ability to convincingly lie through your teeth when the situation called for it. His professors bought it but that didn't mean they went easy on him. Sam was in law school after all, so they didn't drop him from the program—as they had threatened to—but he still had to make up all the work he missed. All of that drama combined with the move made for a very cranky Sammy that Dean was all too happy to stay away from, even if it meant that alone time in bed with Cas had to be postponed a little while longer.

Dean didn't quite know what to do with himself, or Castiel and Claire for that matter, for that awkward first week. After traveling around for so long and repeatedly risking his life, it actually took him a while to wrap his mind around the idea that they were actually staying in one town for longer than a day. He kept wanting to climb back into the Impala and just start driving again and each and every time Dean had to remind himself that he was already exactly where he wanted to be. And he was—it was just different than anything he was used to. Now that Cas and Claire were with him, it was even different than how he had lived back in Lawrence. Instead of living lonely in the backroom of his own bar, now he was living with two—and soon to be three—other people. Some days it felt overwhelming, almost stifling, but the more days went by the more Dean realized that he really liked walking back into the hotel only to have Claire jump up into his arms and start babbling about her day. He began to depend on those nights spent with all of them on one of the hotel beds, Cas gently leaning against him and Claire sprawled out in front of them, just watching TV. And waking up to find Cas nestled into him each morning was starting to become as necessary as breathing.

Knowing that soon Sam would be permanently added to the mix cemented it in Dean's mind that yes, this was really happening, and that he was going to be here for the foreseeable future. Which meant that he needed to get a job if he didn't want to be a leech for the rest of his life. Now he had no interest in canvasing the many bars in town for a job; Dean had been there, done that, and didn't know if he could put up with going back to being just a bartender instead of a bar owner.

With that option out of the way Dean fell back on the only other thing he knew how to do: fix up cars. There were only a handful of mechanic shops in town that would've been willing to hire him but Dean managed to sweet-talk the manager of a shop less than five blocks away from the town center into letting him in on a trial period. It only took two days for Dean to get hired on full-time.

He wasn't sure what Cas and Claire did while he was away but he suspected that they just wandered around town and occasionally over to Stanford campus when the mood struck them. Every now and again Claire would share some random fact about the town when Dean got back to the hotel, like how many parks they had or what the city's population was. He was just happy that they were getting out; both of them, but especially Cas, were beginning to relax again as they realized that they didn't have to keep glancing over their shoulder. No one was out to get them now and they were finally starting to enjoy the sensation of simply being able to appreciate the little things in life. By the end of a week the three of them had fallen into a pretty steady rhythm. In fact Dean was almost confused when Sam called early in the morning and told him that it was Moving Day.

Moving Day was hell. Not as hellish as fighting off hordes of demons or enraged archangels but by the end of it Dean would've almost have rather been put in a small room with Raphael rather than move one more box. It took five trips in the Impala and two with the truck Sam had borrowed from a friend to get all of Sam's shit to his new apartment. Cas was a lifesaver, his newly restored angelic strength enabling him to move some of Sam's heaviest furniture single-handedly. Claire was kept busy over at the new place opening up boxes and putting things away and she did a surprisingly good job with it. Mind you she couldn't reach the top cabinets, but everything under four feet was great. When Sam finally got there, he took care of the rest of it, easily handling all the high places.

Between the four of them, the new townhouse was already feeling a bit like home by the time night fell. That was of course after Dean and Sam had spent half an hour wandering from room to room in the two-story apartment bickering over what each space should be used for. There were three bedrooms, one large one downstairs and two slightly smaller ones upstairs. Sam thought that Claire, Dean, and Cas should all bunk upstairs while he got the separate space on the first floor. Dean on the other hand thought that he and Cas should get the big room downstairs; he only got his way once he made the point that the more privacy they got the better.

They had finished off the night with delivery pizza and a movie before crashing on the couch together in the living room. The space was unfamiliar but the company wasn't. He, Sam, and Cas were all crammed onto the couch, Dean in the middle and brushing shoulders with both of them. Claire had passed out two feet from the TV, wiped after such a long day. Sam wasn't far behind her, the younger Winchester's eyelids drooping as he forced himself to stay awake. Finally Dean nudged him and told him to get his ass to bed. He had class in the morning. Sam agreed with a groggy mumble, the Sasquatch gently lifting Claire up into his arms before making his way upstairs.

Castiel watched them climb the stairs with a soft look in his eyes. It was pretty damn adorable but at that moment all Dean could think about was that finally, finally he and Cas were alone. And suddenly all Dean could think about was having sex with the gorgeous creature sitting next to him. As soon as the sound of the bedroom doors closing reached them downstairs, Dean realized that Cas felt the same. He tensed up as Cas shifted closer, his heart picking up in his chest and he had to hold himself back from throwing the angel down and fucking him right there on the couch.

All it took was Cas whispering lightly in his ear and a quick squeeze on his shoulder for Dean to spring up from the couch and chase after him into their bedroom. He had never stripped his clothes off so fast.

OoOoOo

Dean let out a small groan as a shaft of pale morning light hit his eyes then smiled a moment later as it was blocked out with a soft rustle of feathers. If there was anything that felt as amazing as Cas's wings brushing over his bare skin it should probably be illegal.

Rolling over, Dean tucked his arm around his angel's waist. Castiel let out a small murmur of happiness and nestled himself against Dean, his slightly smaller frame fitting just right against Dean's. It wasn't perfect, their knees bumped awkwardly together and Dean was just a little too short to rest his head on top of Cas's but, pressed together naked from shoulder to thigh, it was better than what Dean could've ever imagined for himself.

Dean hummed as he felt open-mouthed kisses being pressed against his neck up to his jawline and tilted his chin up to give Cas better access, a husky chuckle rising up in his throat as Castiel instead pulled his head down and sealed their lips together in a lazy kiss. Nipping at the angel's bottom lip as they pulled away, Dean grinned at his bed-partner. "A guy could get used to waking up this way…"

Cas's own lips quirked up in a smile and rolled over so that he was mostly lying on top of Dean. Dean watched with shamelessly lust-filled eyes as the other's black wings slowly stretched out over them. Last night they had sprung out of his back halfway through when Cas had lost control of himself. Dean had never seen anything so erotic in his life. And he could tell by the look on Cas's face that he knew exactly what he was doing to Dean now with his little his little wing-show. "I agree. We should do this more often."

Smoothing his palms over Castiel's skin, Dean leaned up to steal another quick kiss that quickly turned into something less than chaste. "If you keep this up, neither of us are going to be leaving this room today."

Cas gazed down at Dean then tilted his head to the side, like he was actually considering the option. "At some point we should probably leave. Claire will want to see us and, after last night, you should probably get something to eat."

"I don't know if I should take that as a compliment or not."

"It was meant as one."

Dean ginned up at Cas, trying to stamp down his nerves. "So it was good then?"

"Very."

Neither of them had broached the subject last night but knowing Cas, and remembering how he had acted when they had started to get down to the actual sex, Dean was pretty sure he was his first. Guy that is, not first _ever_. Castiel had Claire after all, he and his wife had definitely made love at least once before. Dean had been a little hesitant but the angel hadn't needed much coaxing; after a little foreplay he had completely let go. Dean liked to think it was because his skills in bed were just that amazing but he had a suspicion that Castiel was secretly a lot sexier than he let on once you got that rumpled suit off of him.

His opinion wasn't changed as Cas let out a pleased purr and smiled down at him, still perched on top of Dean's waist. Something warm flooded into Dean's chest at the sight. His arms slid up around Cas's back, his fingers digging in just slightly into the downy feathers at the base of the angel's wings as he dragged him down for another kiss. "Jesus…How did I ever live without you in my life?"

A flush spread across Castiel's face as Dean tightened his fingers before his smile returned and he raised a hand to run his fingertips over Dean's cheek. "If it's any consolation, I can longer imagine life without you either. You will never know how grateful I am for you and Sam allowing Claire and I into your family so unconditionally."

It was hard sometimes for Dean to accept just how true that statement was. If anyone had told him a year ago that this was what was going to happen he would've laughed, but Cas and Claire had both wheedled their way so far into both of the Winchester's hearts that there was no going back now. "Well, it wasn't much of a family until you two showed up. I should be thanking you."

"If you insist…" Cas's smile turned coy, "I can think of a few ways in which you can show your gratitude."

"Oh really?"

"Yes."

Dean laughed and was about to reconnect their lips when a voice echoed out from the main part of the house through their bedroom door. There was nothing quite like remembering your little brother was around to ruin your mood. "Oh, gross! Dean! For chrissake, clean up after yourself! A kid lives here!"

"What the hell is he-? Oh." Snorting back a laugh, Dean rolled his eyes. "Did we leave our clothes in the hall?"

Cas sat up with a low sigh. "I believe we did."

"Awesome. I should probably pick those up before Sammy throws an even bigger bitch fit." Besides, he had a point. Dean wasn't ashamed of what he and Cas had going but he didn't know if he was ready to have "the talk" yet with a seven-year-old.

His angel seemed to agree, although reluctantly as he rolled off of Dean's chest and his wings disappeared. It was a shame really. Even without wings, naked Cas wasn't such a bad sight either. Castiel seemed to feel Dean's gaze on him and glanced back over his shoulder as he moved across the room to find his clothes. Quirking a brow, the angel eyed Dean right back before speaking, his voice a low rumble. "You don't seem to be getting up."

"Oh, I'm getting there, trust me."

Cas paused then rolled his eyes, though the small smile on his lips gave him away. "Dean, you aren't making this any easier."

Dean grinned. "Did you expect anything different?"

"No, I suppose not." Glancing around the room once more, Cas seemed to give up on trying to physically find his clothes in their bedroom and in the blink of an eye was fully dressed. Angelic powers; totally cheating.

Straightening his tie, Castiel turned to face Dean. They were going to have to find him a few new outfits before the week was done. "I'll go out a retrieve our clothing while you dress. We did get your wardrobe put away in the closet yesterday, didn't we?"

"Yeah, alright." As he threw his covers off, Dean didn't miss the way Cas's blue eyes sharpened on him. It was obvious he wasn't the only one who wished they had a couple more hours in bed. Smiling, Dean pushed himself up and walked across the room to where Cas was still standing. By the time Dean made it over to him, Cas was ready and tilted his head back to receive the kiss Dean pressed against his lips. Dean was still smiling as he pulled away, "Thanks for cleaning up my mess, Cas."

"Of course."

"See you in a few minutes."

Cas nodded and stepped out of the room, closing the door behind him and leaving Dean to scrounge for an outfit with the clothes he had left in the bedroom. Luckily Castiel was right; last night they had moved the few personal items that Dean could claim as his into the room and that included a small duffle bag filled with clothes he had accumulated over the past few weeks. He still didn't have very much to choose from—he was still building up a decent wardrobe after everything he'd owned except for the clothes on his back had gone up in flames with the Roadhouse almost a month ago. Damn, it hadn't even been a month since he had met Castiel and Claire. It already felt like he had known them for years.

After finding a clean pair of jeans and a t-shirt, Dean pulled them on and did what he could to clean himself up. Eventually a shower would definitely be necessary but it could wait at least until after breakfast.

Dean ran his hands through his hair to get rid of his bed-head as he shouldered his way out the door. His and Cas's room was attached to the main living space of the first floor by a short hall that lead into the living room. Dean assumed that their clothes must've been tossed around the back half of the living room and the hall but in the few minutes it had taken him to get dressed Cas had already come through and picked them all up. In fact, yup, there was a small stack of pants and shirts by the entrance to the hall.

As Dean walked into the kitchen he found that he was the last one to arrive, Sam, Claire, and Cas already there. Sam and Claire were at the small dining table shoved into the corner of the room, Claire sitting with newspaper comics spread out in front of her and Sam with his homework scattered across the rest of the tabletop. Cas was leaning up against the tiled countertop and was the first one to spot Dean coming in, offering him a light smile as Sam glanced up at him. "About time you showed up."

"Good morning to you too." Claire giggled at Dean's sarcastic response as he sauntered all the way into the kitchen. He leaned against the counter close enough to Cas so that their shoulders brushed as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Besides," Dean glanced over at the clock on the microwave, "you can't give me too hard of a time. It's only eight seventeen, it's not like I slept in."

Sam let out a small snort until he finally seemed to absorb what Dean said and his eyes snapped up from his school notes. "Wait, what time is it?"

"Eight seventeen. Make that eight eighteen."

Sam's eyes went wide then popped up out of his chair, "Crap! I totally lost track of time!"

Raising a brow as Sam began to dash around the room like a chicken with his head cut off, Dean watched on in amusement. "What's with you?"

"I have a midterm in two hours, Dean! I have to pass this test, it's forty percent of my final grade!"

Castiel tilted his head as Sam began to dig around in one of the cabinets. "Do you need help studying?"

At the well-meaning offer, Sammy paused enough to at least look at Cas when he answered back. "Thanks, Cas, but I don't think you know enough about the kind of law I'm working on to be too much of a help. This is some pretty advanced stuff."

"You are probably correct."

Dean clapped a hand on the angel's shoulder, "You're a better man than me for asking in the first place, Cas. I learned long ago that it's just best to let Sammy work through these little panics on his own. There's nothing really anyone else can do about it and he usually aces all his tests anyway."

"That's because Uncle Sammy is so smart!"

Claire's chirp brought a smile to all three adults' faces, though it quickly melted off of Sam's with a quick shake of his head. "Only sometimes. And right now, the only thing I am is hungry; Dean, where did all our bowls end up?"

Dean shrugged. "How am I supposed to know? You and Claire put the kitchen away yesterday."

"Well would you help me look? I want to eat breakfast before I leave and I don't have time for this."

"I'll give you a hand, Sammy!"

Dean jumped about a foot as a voice echoed out from behind him, Sam banging his head on the cabinet he had half-crawled into as he tried to pull out. Even Cas started, his blue eyes darting over to the doorway leading out to the living room that had suddenly been filled with a certain diminutive archangel. "Gabriel!"

Claire looked up from her comics in surprise as her father announced their visitor and Dean swore loudly. His heart had lurched up into his throat when a person had suddenly appeared behind him and his pulse was just starting to regularize. "Dammit, Gabriel! You can't just pop in like that!"

The archangel grinned and strolled in. He was looking causal in jeans, a dark red shirt, and a light brown jacket; unlike Cas, he apparently understood how to change his clothes. "Just did."

Grabbing the back of his head, Sam freed himself from the cabinet to scowl at Gabriel. Dean's voice caught in his throat as he realized that his brother's eyes had gone pitch black. It shouldn't have been a surprise but it had been a few weeks since Dean had been reminded of Sammy's demonic side. It was almost eerie now, watching Sam train his black gaze on the archangel as he checked out their kitchen. "Nice digs. Looks like you just moved in."

"Gabriel!" Still massaging the back of his head, Sam pushed himself up to his feet. "Why can't you knock on the front door like everyone else?"

The smirk on Gabriel's lips never wavered. "Sorry, but that's not really my style." Sam wasn't amused by his response. "Someone's having a bad morning."

"Yeah, no thanks to you." Sam motioned towards his eyes as he continued to pout.

Gabriel had the gall to grin even wider. "Whoops! Sorry about that, Sammy. I forget how sensitive you are sometimes."

"Like hell you do…"

The archangel shrugged cheekily but the aura of power emanating from him immediately began to fade and after blinking two or three more times Sam's eyes went back to normal. Dean was pretty sure that Sam was right; Gabriel knew exactly what he was doing when he had popped in. If he had really forgotten he would have come in at full-blast and knocked Sam to the ground. To Dean, it looked like the archangel just like messing with Sam—not enough to hurt him but just enough to annoy him—and Dean couldn't figure out if he thought it was hilarious or unsettling. The unsettling part being that it almost seemed like a kid pulling the pigtails of the girl he liked in class.

Seeing that Sam's attention had shifted back towards the cabinets Gabriel turned his own focus towards Claire who had been watching the confrontation unfold with curious eyes "How's my favorite godchild going?"

Claire tilted her head in a way that looked way too similar to her father's own expression of confusion. "Aren't I your only godchild?"

"Details." Gabriel let her question roll off of him before a more serious glint returned to his eyes and his smile fell away just slightly. "But nothing weird has happened in the week or so I've left you alone? No more demons? No more angels, aside from your dad?"

Claire shook her head happily. "Nope! Just you and Daddy!"

"Good. Hopefully it'll stay that way."

"Where the hell did all the spoons get off to?"

Dean let out a noise of disbelief as Sam went right ahead and interrupted Gabriel's interrogation session. "I dunno, maybe they're still in one of the boxes."

"I'm going to run late to class if I take the time to look for it now."

Gabriel quirked a brow as that small teasing smile reappeared on his lips. "You're looking for some food, Sammy?"

"Don't call me that. But, yeah." Hardly sparing a glance back, Sam nodded, too distracted to bother to respond to the jab now that his eyes were fixed. "We haven't had the chance to restock at the grocery store yet so what we have is pretty pathetic. We have cereal somewhere but apparently we're out of bowls and spoons…"

The mood in the room had lifted a bit now that Sam had stopped snarling at Gabriel and even Claire noticed the change. She perked up in her seat as she turned to look at Sam. "Uncle Sammy, how come your eyes go all black around Gabriel but not around Daddy?"

Sam's response was muffled a bit as he continued to look around. "Uh, I guess I've gotten used to having your dad around, sort of like getting used to a really bad smell." Dean snorted and Sam's head popped back out of the cabinets with a sheepish smile. "No offense, Cas."

Yeah, no way anyone could take that offensively, Sammy. Dean rolled his eyes but to his surprise Cas just nodded in understanding. "None taken, the situation is mutual." Between those two comments Dean had to wonder about just what his housemates were going through on a daily basis. Cas and Sam got along so well these days that he hadn't even considered that they might be having to deal with any lingering effects of mixing angels and demons in the same space.

Sam sent Cas one more apologetic look before turning back to Claire. "Right, well, anyway, Gabe is stronger than your dad, so he affects me more."

It was stated as the truth because that's exactly what it was, the truth. Gabriel was stronger than Castiel, that's what their whole quest to find him had been based around and now that it was over it was hard to refute. Gabriel of course took it with his usual humility. "My awesomeness overwhelms him. But not even the amazing me can do everything. Pass me your phone, Sam."

Sam straightened up and hesitantly reached for his smart phone in the back pocket of his jeans, his whole stance back on the defensive even as he passed the device over to the archangel. "Why do you need it?"

Gabriel quickly pulled a similar phone out of his own jacket pocket and his thumbs began to fly over their keypads. It looked like the archangel not only more in tune with modern fashion than Cas but modern technology as well. Dean had tried to get Cas to make a call on his cell to Sammy once and it had taken Dean longer than he thought possible to explain just exactly how and why he should make that call. The lesser angel was much fonder of just flying to deliver any message that needed sending. "I need to get your phone number and I'm putting mine into yours."

Screwing his face up into an expression of frustration, Sam tried his question again, this time a little more specific. "Why do _you_ need my cell phone number?"

Dean was right there with him. "Sammy's right. It doesn't seem like something a guy like you would need."

With a few more clicks Gabriel finished up and passed Sam his phone back with an annoyed scowl at it having been insinuated that he had a weakness. "Hey don't blame it on me. It's because _someone_ had the brilliant idea to inscribe you and your brother's ribs with an Enochian invisibility cloak." Cas cross his arms over his chest as Gabriel jerked his thumb back at him accusingly. "Now no angel, not even me, can find you without a little help."

Sam checked his phone over carefully as if worried it had been booby trapped before sticking it back in his pocket. "Why do you need my number and not Dean's?"

"Because he's easy to find. All I have to do is figure out where Cassie is and his puppy's never too far away."

And that was enough of that. Scowling, Dean flipped the archangel off as he straightened up then walked around Sam to dig out a frying pan in the cabinet his brother had just been rooting through. Just because Sammy had to leave soon didn't mean that the rest of them couldn't have a nice, eggs and bacon filled breakfast. And cooking would distract him from wanting to punch an angel in the face which a small part of his brain was warning him would not go well.

Gabriel scowled at the gesture but, to Dean's surprise, didn't retaliate. He seemed to have something else in mind instead as he turned back to Sam. "Well, I was planning on just taking the kiddo here out for pancakes so we can have a little chat about her growing abilities, but your pouty face is just a little too adorable for me to ignore. Do you want to tag along?"

Dean turned his head so that he could eavesdrop a little better as Sam floundered for an answer to the out-of-the-blue offer. Castiel had perked up too, undoubtedly at the news that Gabe was taking his daughter out. "Uh, you mean now?"

"Yes, now."

"But I have class soon."

Gabriel waved a hand dismissively. "I'll get you back in time, don't worry."

Knitting his brows together, Sam tried to figure out exactly what was going on. Either that or he was trying to figure out how to get out of it. "If you mean you're going to fly me, this isn't exactly a good day for me to start figuring out whether or not Air Angel would cause me any lasting damage or not." That's right, Sam had never had to fly anywhere with angels yet. All the better for him; if Dean could help it he'd never have to go flying again either.

"Relax, Sammy, I drove here."

Cas tilted his head and eyed Gabriel with a curious skepticism. "You drove here? In a vehicle?"

Scoffing, Gabriel pulled a set of keys from his jacket and jangled them in Cas's face. "Duh. Oh," one of the other keys on the ring caught his attention, "I also bought a house outside of town about an hour ago."

"_What?_"

Dean, Sam, and Castiel had simultaneously asked the same question, varying expressions of disbelief of each of their faces. Claire blinked up at the adults in the room, not understanding why they were so surprised and apparently Gabriel didn't either, answering back like it was the most obvious thing in the world as he slipped the keys away. "Well, yeah."

Castiel shook his head, "But, what about your property in Los Angeles?"

"Balthazar is watching it for me. I figured he could handle it."

Frowning, Dean moved to stand behind Castiel. "You can just move like that?" Shouldn't an archangel relocating be a pretty big thing? Did that mean Palo Alto was going to be flooded with angels? What would happen to all the demons or part demons, like Sam, living there?

"It's not a permanent move, more like a long-term visit. Besides, I got to stick close if I'm gonna keep an eye on the kid here."

Claire giggled as Gabriel reached over the kitchen table and ruffled her hair and Sam finally found his voice again, "But, you can't just do that. Stanford has an established demon community. I mean, it's small but you can't just force them out and—"

A frown had slipped back onto Gabriel's face, that serious glint returning to his eyes. "Hey, I'm not kicking anyone out. Unless the shit hits the fan, I'll keep a low-profile. Believe me, I don't need the attention." He straightened out his jacket with a subdued flourish, similar to an actor preparing to go on stage. Which actually sounded like it was basically what was happening. "As long as I'm here, the only thing everyone will know me as is 'Gabriel Novak'," Castiel snapped to attention at the use of his late wife's surname, "the very human brother of the very human Castiel, and Claire's uncle." Glancing back, Gabriel noticed Cas's surprised expression and shrugged. "I'll work out the particulars of my cover story later. Now, are you just going to sit there and accuse me of things I don't plan to do or are do you want to eat something this morning?"

Sufficiently cowed, Sam leaned back on the counter with a slight flush on his cheeks. "Um, yeah. Thanks. Sorry."

"That's more like it." Spinning around, Gabriel motioned for Claire to get up. "Come on, kiddo. Get your coat or whatever it is you need to do to get ready. We're going for pancakes."

Claire looked down at her clothes then back up at Gabriel. "But I'm in my pajamas!"

"That's alright. They're adorable. Besides, this is a college town; people way older than you walk around in pajama pants all day and get away with it, you'll have no problem."

A smile lit Claire's face and she bounced up out of her chair. "If you say it's okay! Come on, Uncle Sammy, let's go!" Sam blinked as the little girl grabbed his hand then began to pull him out of the kitchen towards the front door. "Bye Daddy! Bye Dean!"

This was all happening way too early in the morning for Dean to keep up with. He barely managed a wave as Claire tugged his brother out, Gabriel following close on their heels as he sauntered out with a wink. All three of them were gone as quickly as Gabriel had appeared and it took Dean a moment to really figure out just what happened.

"Huh."

"Indeed."

Dean looked up to find Cas looking just as shell-shocked as he felt. The angel was still standing against the counter with his arms crossed over his chest but his eyes were glued firmly on the door his daughter had just vanished through. Now that Dean really thought about it, "You just gonna let Gabriel take Claire out like that?"

There was a long pause before Cas gave a tentative nod. "Yes. I trust him to take care of her. When it comes down to it, there would be little I could do to stop him even if I didn't want him to take her along. Not only is he stronger than me but now that he has agreed to be her guardian it is his right to spend as much time with her as he deems fit."

"That sounds like a shitty deal on your end."

Cas's eyes finally left the front door and met Dean's gaze, blue eyes piercing into green. "Claire is alive because of it. You're alive because of it. That's why I will never regret it."

Hard to refute that one. Especially with the way Cas was looking at him now. "Good point." Realizing that he was still holding the frying pan, Dean frowned then waved it towards Cas. "I know you don't need to eat anymore that you got your full mojo back, but do you want something for breakfast?"

Some tension melted from Cas and he nodded. "Breakfast would be very nice, thank you."

"No problem." Finally setting the frying pan down on the stove, Dean moved to the fridge and pulled out a carton of eggs and a healthy share of bacon. "After this I'll want to take a shower then get ready for work. Do you have something to do today?"

He heard Cas shift and a moment later felt him lean up against him, the angel crowding close. It was a little closer than Dean normally would've liked it, especially since he was cooking, but he didn't mind having Cas in his personal space so much anymore. Actually he kind of preferred it now. "After Claire returns from her own breakfast, I may take her to the aquarium. She expressed some interest in it last week."

Dean shook his head. "She's taking after Sammy, always wanting to go learn something."

He felt Cas smile softly against his shoulder. "I don't know. I think she has been taking after you more and more."

"Oh yeah?" Tilting his head back, Dean smiled right back as their lips almost collided. "That a good thing?"

"Most of the time, yes. It's a very good thing."

OoOoOo

Dean had to leave for work before Claire got back but he wasn't too worried that Gabriel would eventually take her home. If Cas trusted the guy with his daughter the least Dean could do was to trust that he could get her home in one piece. Around noon any lingering doubts he had were settled when he got a text from Sam saying that he thought he had aced his midterm. Figures. But if Sammy had managed to get back in time to take his test than that meant that Claire had probably gotten back to their apartment at a decent hour as well.

Now, about seven hours later, Dean was the only mechanic left in the garage, working late. He actually didn't mind too much. The other guys had been great so far but there was usually something peaceful about the quiet that fell over the shop once everyone else left for the night. That, and he wasn't sure whether or not Gabriel was still hanging around their new place. If the angel _was_ there it meant that Dean was leaving Cas and Sam to deal with him on their own but any guilt was easily outweighed by the relief he felt at not having to try to be civil. This morning Gabe had been decent but, despite everything he had done for them, it was still hard for Dean to forget that when Castiel had first come to him begging for help they had been turned away. Just thinking about it still pissed him off. Luckily working on cars had always been a stress-reliever for him so he threw himself back into finishing up his work, glad for the distraction.

Leaning over the bum engine he was currently trying to repair, Dean scrubbed the sweat and grease from his face with a stained rag before shoving it back into the pocket in his jeans. He always loved working on cars but this one he was working on now was turning out to be a real pain in the ass. From what the client had said, the sedan had been sitting in their estranged uncle's front lawn and had pretty much been left to rust. Then the crazy old man had died, she hadn't given him the details, leaving the car to his niece who decided that it would be neat to actually be able to drive the thing. Dean had already replaced about fifteen individual parts and she was still having trouble starting up.

He was trying to figure out if the garage was going to need to send out for an entirely new engine when a soft sound to his left made him jump. Dean had been feeling a little weird all day; he felt anxious and confined, like someone was watching him. It had made sense when the other guys were still here but he had expected it to fade when they left. It hadn't. At first he had figured that it was just his mind's way of kicking up a fuss at leaving home after they were all just beginning to settle in but even that didn't make too much sense. The creepy sensation had been going on for a good six hours now; just like his theory with his co-workers, if being away from home had caused it, the feeling definitely should've worn off by now.

After everything Dean had gone through on his trip across the U.S. with Cas, Sam, and Claire he had gotten used to acting on his instincts and he didn't like that right now his instincts were screaming that something didn't feel right about the shop. The last time he had felt this way a demon had been chasing after him. He had never experienced these sorts of feelings in the garage before though and he couldn't figure out why anything would've changed today. Nothing was much different, there was no real reason for it and there was no reason for a demon to start chasing him now, especially not when Gabriel had just rolled into town. Maybe he was just going a bit crazy or maybe his nerves had finally caught up with him after their little cross-country adventure. Maybe he was just imagining it.

Dean jerked back from the car's engine as just then a cackle echoed out around the room, reverberating off of the gray walls and sending a shiver down Dean's spine. It was then that he knew two things for sure: he wasn't going crazy and he knew what he was dealing with now. He had been mixed with so many angels and demons that Dean had forgotten about all the smaller things that skulked around in the shadows. That's why he hadn't recognized what he already knew somewhere in the back of his mind before now. The feeling of being watched, the weird noises, and now that he was paying attention, yep, it was even a colder than normal.

It was a ghost, maybe a poltergeist, and Dean had never sensed it before and only one thing had changed between now and yesterday in the entire shop. It must've come in today with their new client's car. Damn it! Their client definitely should have mentioned that in her paperwork! What had she said, that her crazy old uncle had this beauty of a car sitting in his yard, untouched, for years, that he had recently died…There were so many ways that a ghost could've attached itself to this car that it made his head spin a little to think about. The car could've been haunted for years, or the man could've even died in it—it was impossible to say for sure, but the woman had to have known about it, or at least suspected it, when she brought it in. Dean had heard of haunted objects before, of haunted cars, like James Dean's Little Bastard, but he had never actually seen one before. It was probably why his repairs weren't working like they should on the stupid thing.

Dean took another step back from the car and eyed it suspiciously. "Alright…Unless I've really gone over the deep end, I'm pretty sure that laugh came from you." He felt a little ridiculous talking to a car but less so since it felt like it—or something in it—was actually listening. "Now, we can do this the easy way or we can do this the hard way, but I'm warning you, the shit I've dealt with in the past month would make even your blood run cold, if you still had blood, and I've come out on top. Trust me when I say I'm not someone you want to mess with."

His eyes narrowed as across the room there was a high-pitched clatter, like a wrench dropping onto the concrete floor of the shop and the room seemed to get even colder. If he looked closely the shadows in the corners of the room seemed to waver then grow blacker. Seemed like the ghost didn't like being called out and Dean would bet money that it was going to manifest itself soon judging by the drop in light and temperature. Growing up, he hadn't had much experience fighting ghosts but they were some of the more common supernatural creatures that roamed about so he had heard enough stories to know what needed to be done to get rid of them. Besides, compared to beating back a demon kicking one ghost out felt like exterminating a small household pest. He didn't have any holy water, didn't have any salt, but getting a hold of some iron for once wasn't going to be a problem.

Ducking down behind the car, Dean reached back and carefully wrapped his fingers around a tire iron. He was pretty sure that whatever had come in with the car had detached itself and was now sneaking around the rest of the garage. He just had to figure out where it was.

There was another car raised up on a lift next to the one Dean had been working on and he used it like a shield against his invisible opponent as he crept forward, slinking around the pole that was supporting the car over his head as he scanned the rest of the room. Ghosts were notorious for being hard to pin down but, from the stories he'd heard, all you needed was a little patience and eventually you'd be able to pinpoint them. You just had to be quiet and really pay attention to what was going around you, because sometimes the clues were really subtle…

Like feeling a cold burst of air on the back of your neck. Springing away from the lift, Dean swung the tire iron into a cloud of white mist that had materialized less than a foot behind him. A small screech filled the room as for a second the figure of a human, a man, flickered in the mist, before it dissolved and the mist rushed away to the other side of the room.

Dean swore as he brought himself into a defensive position, ready to swing at any hint of paranormal activity. Hopefully that first blow had at least somehow wounded it, or weakened it, because it definitely hadn't killed it and seemed to have made it angry. The tools on the back wall of the shop began to rattle as the room grew colder still to the point where Dean could see his breath as he exhaled. His eyes caught on a black shadow as it separated from its natural breather and skirted across the ground along the back wall of the shop then made a sharp turn and rushed straight at him.

Dean swung with all the force of a major-league baseball player up to bat and seemed to catch the thing on its shoulder but it wasn't quite enough to deter its attack. The air rushed out of Dean's lungs as the thing, immaterial as it was, slammed into him and knocked him back, hard, into the base of the lift. The blow sent the tire iron flying from his grasp, his whole chest feeling like it had been dipped in dry ice as the ghost retreated and he slid to the concrete floor.

Momentarily stunned, Dean tried to stand up but couldn't get off his ass. His legs and arms felt numb, his mind buzzing still from the impact of getting thrown into the steel pole. He couldn't even focus, didn't know how it was going to come at him next—oh, oh shit. Dean's gaze spun when he turned it up as an ominous creak broke the silence that had settled over the shop. The car up on the lift he had slammed into was tilting up. Not like it was falling naturally—no, the entire back side of the car was lifting up, all by itself, and the front end, the end facing Dean, was sliding off of the lift and down towards him. A multi-thousand pound chunk of metal was sliding right towards him and he couldn't even sit up. Disoriented and scared shitless there was only one thing Dean could think of to do.

"_Cas!_"

He barely had a chance to squeeze his eyes shut when he heard a flap of wings, felt an arm wrap around his waist and a rush of air. His eyes flew back open to find himself in the far corner of the shop, watching from a distance of a good thirty feet as the car he was just underneath came crashing hood-first into the concrete floor right where he had been laying.

He didn't even get the chance to see his angel before a bright white light filled the room. The intensity of the light forced Dean to close his eyes again as he heard the ghost let out one last shriek as it was smote in a flash of holy rage. Dean knew it was gone as the light began to fade, the entire feeling of the garage had gone back to its normal, neutral self.

Dean let out a short breathe of relief and opened his eyes again only to find Cas kneeling beside him, the angel's piercing blue eyes narrowed in concern. "Dean! Are you alright?"

"I'm okay." Dean winced as he pushed himself up so that he was sitting upright, his back resting against the wall behind him. "Thanks for that. The bastard came out of nowhere."

Cas's eyes narrowed further as he tentatively put a hand on Dean's chest, as if to hold him upright. "Are you injured?"

Shaking his head, Dean winced again then watched Cas's hand as it began to emit a soft glow. "Just my pride. And my head a bit, but I don't think anything's bleeding so I'm probably good."

The angel frowned and Dean felt it as a bit of Cas's Grace seeped into his skin. "Dean, you fractured two ribs and your collarbone."

"Oh." That explained why it kind of hurt to breathe. His two recent semi-death experiences had definitely skewed his perception of physical pain.

"'Oh'?" An annoyed huff burst past Castiel's lips. "That is all you have to say?"

"Sorry?"

"You're impossible." Dean was about to apologize again when Cas leaned in closer and pressed his lips to Dean's. Dean couldn't help the pleased murmur that escaped him as he parted his lips to deepen the kiss and felt Cas's Grace rush into him and begin to mend his damaged body.

It didn't take long this time for him to feel completely healed but when Cas moved to pull away, Dean looped an arm around his neck, tugged him back down, and sealed their lips back together. Unlike during their battle with Raphael, now they had the time and Dean took full advantage of it, not stopping for air until he had drawn a low, heated moan from Castiel's throat.

Separating just enough to catch his breath, Dean reluctantly released his hold on Cas. "Thanks for that."

"Always."

Dean grinned at Castiel's graveled reply before testing out his healed bones by slowly rising to his feet. Everything seemed to be back in order; his head felt cleared, his chest normal, and it no longer hurt to breathe. He offered Cas a grateful smile but as the angel straightened up to stand next to him, a question came to mind. "Hey, why didn't Gabriel swoop in when that a-hole showed up?"

Castiel pursed his lips as the ghost was brought back to his attention. "Gabriel isn't obligated to save our lives, only Claire's. He will not respond to any distress you experience unless you pray directly to him and he is in a charitable mood, or if doing so will directly affect Claire's safety. I, however, will always come and would have rather had you contact _me_ sooner to keep you from experiencing the pain."

Frowning, Dean tried to recoup some of his dignity. He wasn't ashamed to have needed Cas to save him, just that he had needed Cas to save him from a stupid, simple haunt. "It was just a ghost. I had it handled."

"Clearly."

"Well, I did until it slammed me into the lift." Castiel still seemed completely unconvinced. Sighing, Dean put his hands on his hips. "Look, I'll call next time, okay? First thing."

"Thank you." That seemed to have been the answer he was waiting for. "Now, I believe you have worked enough hours for today. Let's go home; if I recall correctly Sam is making lasagna for dinner."

Dean's stomach rumbled at the mention of food, much to Cas's amusement, but a look around the garage told Dean that he couldn't leave quite yet. The place was a mess now with tools littering the floor, not to mention the heap of bent metal that used to be a car sitting in the middle of the room. His boss would kill him if he leaved the shop like this, ghost or no ghost. "Listen, Cas, I'd seriously love to but I'd better clean up here first. You go ahead home and eat though, just tell Sammy to wrap up a share for me and leave it in the oven."

"I can think of a better solution." Dean started as Cas's blue gaze turned to the room and within the blink of an eye the entire garage had been restored to the condition it had been in before the ghost had made itself known. Angel powers, totally cheating. And Dean was completely alright with that. "Now can we leave?"

"Uh, yeah," Dean checked the room, once, then twice, and found nothing out of order, "guess so. The Impala's out front, go ahead and wait inside while I lock the place up. I'll be out in a minute."

OoOoOo

Dean got him and Cas home in time for dinner, though both Sam and Claire were surprised at seeing them walk through the door together. Neither of them had even realized that Cas had left the apartment. Sam had saved any questions for later though and the four of them had sat down for dinner together at the kitchen table that had momentarily been cleaned of Sam's schoolwork.

As soon as the meal was over and the plates were cleared however, Sam's papers and textbooks were back on the table and Cas and Claire had moved to the couch in the living room to watch TV while Sam began to pour back over his notes and Dean washed the dishes. Dean joined the two angels soon after, leaving Sam alone to his studies and letting himself relax after his unusually stressful day at work.

After that, the hours passed by quickly, though when Dean walked back into the kitchen to see how Sam was doing, he wasn't sure his brother had even realized just how late it had become. Sammy's nose was still stuck in a book as he diligently scribbled down some arcane piece of legalese that Dean would never even begin to try to understand. It seemed like Sam was always studying and kept to himself too much but Dean wasn't too worried. The kid had become used to living by himself and didn't quite have that balance between time for family and school down yet. He'd get better with time.

Walking over to the fridge, Dean pulled out two bottles of beer then walked back over to the table. Sam only noticed he was there when he was a foot away and looked up from his book in surprise. "Hey, Dean."

"Hey yourself." Dean grinned, "You know it's eleven o' clock, right?"

"What?" Sam leaned back to see around Dean to the clock on the stove. "Huh"

"Time flies when you're having fun, right Sammy?"

"Something like that, but I'm thinking I could use a break." Sam pushed his chair back and stretched his long arms over his head before looking back up at Dean. "So what actually happened to you this afternoon?"

"Nothing big."

Sam gave him a look of utter disbelief and Dean sighed as he sat down at the table next to his brother, setting down a beer in front of each of them. "Relatively anyway. A ghost showed up in the shop today and finally decided to act out once everyone else left."

Sam's brows shot up. "A real ghost?"

"Yup."

Now his brother looked as excited as schoolboy as he leaned forward across the table to grab his beer. "What happened?"

Shrugging, Dean tried to figure out how he could relate that night's events without telling Sam about how badly he got his ass handed to him. "It made some noise, moved some stuff. I tried to get it with a tire iron but it didn't really kill it, just sort of kept it at arm's length."

"But you got rid of it eventually?"

"Yeah. Well, actually, Cas did. It was becoming a bit of a problem so I called him up to help me. Cas of course had the thing blown away within seconds."

"I guess having an angel as a lover has its perks, huh?"

A small blush lit Dean's cheeks at the word "lover" and he tried to cover it up with his beer bottle as he took another drink. It had been so long since Dean had had an honest to God "lover" that it felt awkward in his mind but, at the same time, he couldn't deny that's what he and Cas had become, through whatever series of small miracles. "Yeah, guess so." As his embarrassment ebbed away, Dean lowered his beer to reveal a small grin, "Seems like you're on your way to earning those perks yourself though."

Sam blinked at him before his lips drew down into a scowl as he realized what Dean was referring to and a flush spread across the younger Winchester's face . "Gabriel's an ass. He's just messing with me."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, Sammy."

Rolling his eyes, Sam took another long sip of his beer before shaking his head, clearly intent on changing the topic. "Speaking of sleeping, I'm surprised you're still up and not in bed with Cas."

Dean shrugged then pointed towards the ceiling. "He and Claire are up on the roof."

Pausing with his bottle half-way to his lips, Sam thought for a moment before setting his beer back down on the table. "I hate to ask but, what are they doing on the roof?"

"They said they were stargazing." Apparently it was something of a tradition between the two of them, had been before Dean had even come into their life. It was kind of cute.

"Stargazing." Sam repeated then shook his head again as his own eyes turned back down to his books, "Sounds nice."

"Yeah, except for the whole being two stories up thing with nothing but a slippery singled roof under your feet." It was safe to say that Dean still hadn't quite recovered from being flown around, and subsequently dropped, by angels. That was probably the main reason he hadn't asked if he could tag along. He had no interest in being any further from the ground than was absolutely necessary for the rest of his life. Also, a little father-daughter private time between Cas and Claire would probably do them some good every now and then.

Sam frowned. "I hope the neighbors don't catch them. That would be an awkward thing to try and explain away to the property manager."

"Yeah." Especially because they would have to first explain that Cas and Claire weren't entirely human. When Dean thought about how they'd even start that conversation he let out a loud sigh. "We live a very weird life."

Sam snorted in amusement before a small smile slipped onto his face and he looked back up to meet his brother's gaze. "All the same, it's not too bad. Even with everything that's happened over the years…I don't think I'd change it, now that I know how it turns out."

Dean let out another sigh as he thought of everything that had gone wrong in his life, everything that he had had to deal with: Mom, Dad, Sam leaving, Ellen and Jo, the Roadhouse burning to the ground, getting chased down by demons, hellhounds, and angels. Even with all that…somehow, somehow things had worked out and for the first time in his life he would even dare to say that he wasn't just content; he was actually, genuinely happy.

"You know what? Neither would I."


End file.
